Along Came A Fire
by Mystery Hunter
Summary: The track - the sidewalk - raced under his feet. His vision was tunneled. The only thing in sight was the finish line - was the mouth of the alley. Then suddenly there was a bang and red on the road - red on the walls. And everything was spinning, only the sidewalk - only the road - under his feet. Then blaring lights and only blackness. For which a part of him was grateful for.
1. Chapter 1

"I can't believe that they still have him in the system!"

Caim didn't bother saying anything back to his father's remark; he had learned a while ago that what he said on the matters of his father's upset made no difference.

"They must know that he's a mutant, or at least associated with them. God, our government had gone to absolute rubbish. Caim, are you listening to me? When you vote, make sure that it counts, don't help to elect one of their kind-" Caim didn't look up but he guessed by the rustle of paper that his father had poked the news story with a bony finger. "-or someone else that is only here to steal good Americans' jobs."

_So don't elect any Asians or East Indians or… pretty much don't elect anyone that isn't black or white. _"Alright Dad," he replied, saying it only to ward off one of his father's rants. His father would surely go off if he thought that his song wasn't conforming to his beliefs, but there was no way in Hell that Caim's ever would. His father was homophobic, racist to everyone but whites and blacks, and he thought that mutants were beyond scum and the crap on the bottom of his boots. Unintentionally, and unknown to his father, Caim went against all his father's disgusts. Caim was gay himself, had been for a little over a year since he turned twelve, and his best friend was an Asian mutant. Had his father known any of this Caim would have been sent off to some remote place in Siberia or somewhere equally isolating for those his father didn't like.

Caim stood without speaking as he ignored his father's dark mutterings. He pushed his chair under the breakfast table with his hip and went to the sink where he washed his cereal bowl and glass.

"Caim?" his mother asked, stepping into the kitchen. Caim looked at her out of the corner of his eye, watching as she pulled her long black hair up into a bun, and nodded. "Yea Mom?" he replied.

"You have your track meet today right?"

_Are you going to come? _"Yes."

"Well have fun and good luck." She smiled and Caim smiled back. _It's better than what Dad'll say._

"Have fun and good luck," his father scoffed. "Win. Show the others that you're the best."

_Of course Dad, because everything is about power and status. You want me to win because you know that I'm going up again Asians and East Indians and the rest of them. Yeah, win to show white dominance, I'll totally do that just for you._ He looked over at his father and gave him a mock salute. "Yes Sir," he replied military style. This got a chuckle from the balding man and Caim smiled.

"I'll pick you up after," his father said, and Caim's smiled twitched a bit.

_Don't. Don't pick me up. Don't do it. _

"It ends at five, so I'll be there then."

_No. No nononono. _"It's ok Dad, I'll just take the bus home like usual."

"No, I'll pick you up. I'm over that way anyway, so I'll just get you."

_Please no… _"Oh, ok." Caim scratched the back of his head and gave another smile. _Don't come. You'll see me with Mia and you'll send me away. Who knows what you'll do to her if you see her. Don't come. It's not like you really care about my meet anyway. _"My meet might end early though; I don't know when my events are-"

"You have your cell phone, just call me. End of discussion." His father stood up and brushed toast crumbs off his black suit. Caim's mother passed him his lunch from the fridge and he tucked it into his bag. "I will see you at five, or whenever you call me," he told Caim as he walked past. He kissed his wife on the cheek before leaving.

_No you won't. You're not picking me up. No matter what you are not picking me up. I'll fake an injury if I have to. _He grumbled darkly in his head as he made his way upstairs to finish getting ready. On his way up he passed his eight year old sister, Melissa, who was sprinting down the stairs so their mom could drive her to school. Caim caught her around the waist as she ran past and kissed the top of her head. "Morning to you too," he greeted. She laughed and squirmed in her arms. "I'm going to be late!" she cried, smiling.

"I think your teacher will understand family time."

She laughed again and he gave her one last kiss before letting go. He waited on the stairs for a couple minutes until he heard his mother call up to him. "We're leaving!" she called. "Have fun at your meet and we'll see you when you get home! Love you!"

_I don't get how she married Dad. She's a little racist in her own way, and she's scared of mutants, but at least she doesn't hate them. She's fine with gays… I don't get it._

"Love you!" Melissa added.

He smiled and waved even though he knew they couldn't see him. When he heard the door close he sat on the stairs and ran a hand through the dark hair that had been given to him by his mother. His brown eyes were a mix from both parents, and his nearly paper white skin probably came from both parents as well. Caim personally liked his appearance, though he got picked on for always looking like a ghost. For years he had been planning on dressing up in all white, putting bags under his eyes, and attaching fake chains to his ankles to call himself a ghost on Halloween.

He chuckled at the thought and stood, heading to the bathroom to finish getting ready for his day.


	2. Chapter 2

The track raced under his feet as they pounded the pavement. His vision was tunneled, the only thing in sight being the finish line that was closing in fast. There was one Asian guy ahead of him by a couple feet and another white guy close on his heels. Caim knew that if he lost first place it would still be a close race and that was what he was going for at least. _Screw you Dad. I'm not going to win. I'm not going to help you to prove anything, because I know that you would use my win against others. _Despite the thought he sped up a little, trying to at least close the distance a little more. The guy didn't notice, or if he did he didn't care. Caim found that most other racers just wanted either to win or to lose a close and fair race. Caim personally didn't care about winning, no matter how much his father drilled him, but when he did win he didn't make a big deal about it like some people.

The finish line was coming up fast and Caim absentmindedly picked Mia's face out from the crowd on the sidelines; his mind seemed on auto-pilot to find his red and black haired friend. Despite his search, he stayed focus on his pumping legs and a couple seconds later he felt the groove that marked the finish. He had completed the race in second place.

He slowed to a jog for a couple paces until he stopped; bending over with his hands on his knees he took a deep breath. He straightened and went back to the finish, shaking hands and congratulating the other runners. When Mia burst out of the crowd and sprinted up to him he pulled her into a tight hug, accidently picking her up in the process. _And Dad thinks that mutants are soulless, heartless monsters._

"That was awesome!" she cried. "You were great!"

He laughed and set her down.

"You were really close too. I overheard the guy talking with his friends about how he thought you were going to pass him." She pushed her frayed red bangs out of her face and used her hand as a visor as she tilted her head up to smile at him.

_For a second I was, but I don't want to give my dad the satisfaction. It'll set him off for another rant tonight about white supremacy and I don't want to be the reason for that discussion. _"I was at my limit," he replied, smiling.

"You just had a couple more steps though!"

"You know I don't care about winning." He walked over and grabbed his bag from where he had dropped it onto the grass.

"I know you don't, but I'm just saying," Mia replied, jogging after him after slinging her own bag over her shoulder. "Was it just those couple steps too many?"

_I could have passed him without a second thought; a couple steps would have been too simple. _"Exactly." He settled down under a tree off to the side of the track and fished a water bottle out of his bag. Mia plopped down behind him and rested her hands on his shoulders. "That's it champ, drink, you deserve it," she joked in her fake Brooklyn boxer coach voice. She rubbed his shoulders and he took another drink of water. "I'll beat him next time boss," he replied, going along with the joke. She smacked his right shoulder and moved to sit next to him. "That was your last event right?" she asked.

_Unfortunately ._"Yep." He took another drink of water and lay back on the grass, closing his eyes. He wasn't tired, but the darkness behind his eyelids was comforting.

"So what are you going to do now?" Mia asked. "Do you want to come over and play or something?" By play she meant play the guitar. Caim had been learning how to play for the past couple years and he went over to Mia's house on a regular basis to accompany her while she played her electric keyboard. Her parents liked him and Caim felt more comfortable at the Zang's house than at his own. Mia's parents were so secure with him that they actually told Mia to tell him that she was a mutant after they returned from a two month long leave of absence. One day Caim had gone to school and Mia wasn't there. Nor was she there the day after that, or the day after that, and there was no answer on their telephone or at their house. When they came back they explained that they had gone to China to visit family, specifically family who were also mutants.

Mia was pretty much a dragon, which was the simple way she explained it upon being informed by her parents that Caim could be trusted and told. She could breathe fire and her nails were sharpened to claws; she frequently had to clip them to avoid hurting somebody or breaking something.

"Caim?" She snapped her fingers and he blinked, opening his eyes. He had drifted off for a couple seconds, though it felt like several minutes. "Yeah?" he replied.

"So do you want to come over?" She was picking up her backpack as he sat up and ran a hand through his hair to dislodge the grass and dirt. _I shouldn't. Dad's picking me up... God damn. What the heck am I going to say to him so that he won't? My phone died? He'll ask why I didn't borrow somebody else's. There's nothing to tell him. _"Sure," he replied despite his internal argument. He slung his bag over his shoulder and stood up, pulling his cell phone from its pocket. As he opened it to turn it off he read the time. 4:48. _Damn. _He turned it off and put it away, securing his bag on his shoulders. Mia was already starting up the hill when he began to follow. He called out, smiling. "Wait a second!"

She turned around and stuck her tongue out. "You're the runner, catch up!" She started to run towards the crosswalk and Caim raced after her. He made it to the crosswalk just as she was crossing and the light was starting to change. She turned and started to walk backwards, teasing him with her smile. "Slow poke!" she called.

He smiled and checked down the street, intending on j-walking, when he saw his father's car approaching. _Oh no. _There was a pause where everything seemed suspended, like in action films where they slowed down the shot to show the path of the bullet, but then everything picked up before Caim had a chance to say or do anything. His father's car slowed for a split second but then suddenly it was going too fast. Caim opened his mouth to shout at Mia, who wasn't even close to the safety of the sidewalk, but he didn't get the chance. There was a sickening crunch as his father's car struck his best friend, sending her small body flying back to the pavement. Her head hit the ground and red seeped from beneath her, slowly surrounding her head.

All Caim could do was stare. There were no thoughts, no words, no actions. A terrible non-silence descended on him where all the happy noises of the day, birds chirping and kids laughing and music playing, continued to go on as though the most terrible event in history hadn't just happened. Caim wished that he were in a movie, where everything would go silent and he'd fall to his knees and scream, but he was stuck in the real world. There was no silence, he didn't fall to his knees - in fact he stood as straight as a board - and he didn't scream, he couldn't scream. He watched as his father stepped out of his car just as the first person realized what had happened and let out the scream that Caim wanted to release. "911!" the lady shrieked. "Somebody call 911!" She hurried to Mia's side while Caim took a step back, his eyes not leaving his father's tall skinny figure that was turning to him.

In this moment of distress, this moment of horror and the source of what he knew would be countless nightmares, Caim did what he did second best. He did what was terribly embedded in his brain from prehistoric instinct: he ran. As he did, a pain seared through his right shoulder, nearly causing him to stop. When he finally did stop, sitting down, shaking, his phone smashed several blocks away, his wallet empty, on the first train out of the city, he pulled down the corner of his shirt and found a blazing red fire tattoo marking the back of his right shoulder.


	3. Chapter 3

**_One year later. June_**

The room was filled with a faraway hissing noise, the humming of machines, the clatter of dishes. Conversations flitted about the space like birds on caffeine. _Caffeine… yeah. A coffee sounds nice. _Another hiss, more talking, one voice louder than the others.

"Kyle! Eh! Kyle man!"

_Kyle… Oh yeah. That's me. _Caim shook his head, snapping out of his foggy headspace and coming back to reality. He looked over at the burly main chef who was currently starring in his direction. "Oi, you back with us?"

_Not even close. _"Yes Sir."

The corner of the man's mouth twitched up into a smile as he dumped a pan of pasta onto a plate and slid it onto the counter. "Order up!" he called, still watching Caim. "What's up with you man? You've been in another universe all day."

_If I told you I'd probably get fired. _"Nothing. Slept badly." Caim turned back to his station, which was currently empty and clean. It was about nine at night on a Wednesday so the crowds were at a minimum and he was, at the moment, unneeded. Steven, the main chef, walked up to him as a female waitress by the name of Mary took the food away. "We don't need you cutting your hand like you did last week-"

Caim looked down at his hands, primarily at his gloved left hand.

"-so you'd better shape up quick or tell me that I should take those knives away from you."

_There's nothing you can do. _"I'll be ok Sir, thank you. I wasn't feeling well last week and I guess I'm having aftereffects from the medication." _They're aftereffects alright, just not from that kind of medication._

"Alright, well we need you here on Earth with us. Snap out of whatever those aftereffects are and join us in the kitchen."

"Yes Sir."

Steven walked back over to his part of the small galley kitchen and Caim let out a quiet sigh. He ran a hand through over the bandanna that held back his longer than he liked dark hair and scratched the back of his neck. _Damn. _The room spun a little and he gripped the edge of the counter. He tried to focus on the clock on the wall across from him but the numbers duplicated and crossed over each other all at once. He knew what was causing his dizziness and the headache that had raged over his mind earlier but he didn't want to think about it tell alone tell his boss.

When the clock settled back onto the off-white wall he managed to read that it was about twenty after nine, ten minutes before closing and forty minutes before he could leave. He took a deep breath and finished up his shift in his usual silence. When he was helping to do the final cleanup of the restaurant the manager came downstairs holding a handful of envelopes. Caught up in his own nonexistent thoughts Caim didn't notice until the lady stepped up in front of him as he was sweeping up.

"Kyle." She addressed him in a quiet voice and he looked up, blinking to bring her into focus. She handed him one of the envelopes and gave him a small smile. "Will we be seeing you tomorrow?" she asked, as she did every night. He shook his head. "I don't think so Ma'am. Thank you generously for letting me work here, but I don't plan on being here tomorrow."

"Understandable," she replied, turning to give the other workers their weekly pay. She paid them every week as she sometimes hired wanders as she called them. People like Caim who wandered around from city to city and needed a place to work. There were very, very few places that would take the risk but she herself had been a wander and had only gotten where she was – married with a young son and this restaurant – because someone took a chance with her. Therefore she thought it was her duty to take in people just like her past self.

"Well good luck," she told him, and he smiled and nodded in reply. Pocketing the envelope deep into his jean pockets he finished sweeping and put the broom away.

"It was nice to work with you man," Steven told him, coming up behind him. Caim nodded and turned to face the larger man. "Likewise," he replied. Steven smiled and they shook hands. The first time the man had done that to him he had felt awkward and sorry for the kind man that he was touching something so dirty. Since that afternoon eleven days ago Caim had become slightly more used to the contact and didn't flinch when the other workers clapped him on the shoulder or some other form of contact.

Caim left without another word, retrieving his mismatched bag from the back storeroom.


	4. Chapter 4

He had walked only a couple stores down from the restaurant when he pulled his bandanna off and shoved it deep into his pocket, covering his pay. He had learned a few nights ago that walking down dark alleys at night with a bandanna on wasn't the smartest thing to do. He had been jumped by two guys because they thought he was from a rival gang. There had been a small fight and it had only been broken up when one of the guys saw a patrolling cop car driving by. They delivered one last kick to Caim's stomach before heading off, leaving Caim to stumble to his feet and make his way to the place he had been sleeping for the past couple nights.

That 'place' was actually a park set at the back of a deserted old school that had a demolition sign on the fence that circled it. The school hadn't been torn down yet, and the park wasn't in too bad of shape. Caim pushed his bag through the jagged hole in the fence before sliding after it without catching his clothing on it like he had done the first few times. He was set up under the main section of the jungle-gym close to one of the slides and had placed two layers of cardboard overhead to keep most of the rain off of him.

He dropped his bag and stretched his arms above his head, rubbing his eyes. _God... _He blinked to try and clear his vision, then decided to sit down before he fell over. Running his hands through his messy hair he gazed up at the darkening sky. The sun was setting behind him, the rays causing the structure around him to cast shadows on the overgrown grass.

He yawned and rubbed his eyes again, a combination that, for his own reasons, made him feel slightly nauseated. Or maybe the nausea was a side effect like the dizziness and headache. _I won't take another. The leftover pieces in my system will probably let me crash anyway. _He pulled his bag in front of him and pulled out his water bottle and small blanket_. _Situating his bag behind him as a pillow he took a long drink from his water bottle before he closed it. _Note: Get more water tomorrow before heading out. _He set the bottle aside and lay back, pulling the blanket over the lower part of his body; he liked to have his arms free and he found that blankets restricted them.

He closed his eyes, willing his sleep to be straightforward and dark...

Caim bolted upright, the metallic taste of blood fresh in his mouth. He turned his head and spat out the revolting liquid, fighting the urge to also bring up the bile that was rising in his stomach. _God damnit, why! Why why why- _He wrapped his arms around his stomach and leaned forward, clenching every muscle in his body. He wanted to be sick, oh god he wanted to be sick and for so many reasons, but he knew that it wouldn't help anything.

Taking a deep breath he held it for a moment before exhaling and repeating the process_. _Once his stomach had stopped churning he lifted his head and wiped the sweat from his forehead, still breathing deeply. Blood from his bitten lip still trickled into his mouth but he merely swallowed quickly, turning his thoughts to something else to avoid another gagging episode. _Something... something else... Anything... anything else... _He put his head in his hands and spat onto the sand below him. "For God's sake," he hissed. He scratched at a spot on his right palm but quickly pulled his hand away, his eyes widening a bit. _No. No no no no no no... _He shook his head fiercely and gripped his right hand in his left. _Not another. Not- _He paused. "I'm overreacting," he muttered. "Just overreacting. It's just an itch, just a spot, that's it that's all there's nothing else going on."

He quickly gathered up his stuff, stuffing the blanket and water bottle into his bag. Taking his pay from the day before out of his jeans he tucked it into the small pocket on the side of his bag. All his money was hidden at the bottom covered up by his bandanna, a hand towel, and his miniature sewing kit. The bills themselves were pressed into a small journal-like book with the first few pages scribbled on just as a precaution. He always took precautions. _Better safe than sorry._

With a sigh he stood and shook out his limbs, releasing the energy that was shooting around his body like an over hyper game of pinball. His nightmares, which once again had been the cause of his rude awakening, often left him feeling jittery and over-alert. He dabbed at his lip with a finger and relaxed a little more when it didn't come away red. He often bit his lip in his sleep due to an instinct that he had built in himself: he had taught himself not to scream.

Hoisting his backpack onto his back he shuffled his feet around in the sand, hoping to cover up any traces that he had been there - _If they wanted to know that someone was here doing this will have achieved nothing. _- and set off.

The sun hadn't yet risen, but it would within the next hour or two. Caim let a small smile touch his lips; he had always liked being out at this time of day. Everything was so quiet and peaceful.

His muscles itched to run but he knew better than to give in. He would be walking for most of the day searching for the next town that he would momentarily set himself up in so he had to save his strength. Instead he allowed himself a brisk walk, heading west, watching the sun slowly make its way into the sky.


	5. Chapter 5

He reached the next town by two in the morning the next day. He had walked along a highway to get to a city called Hudson and had done the trek in roughly nineteen hours. As he slid down on aching legs to sit up against a wall in a dark alley he took a deep breath and closed his eyes. _That took forever… _Sure he had passed some other towns but he tried to walk the most he could in one day so that he could rest without worrying about time the next day; he had to be in New York City by June 14th and even though he didn't know exactly how many days that was away he knew that it was coming up.

As he sat and tried to calm his aching muscles he recalled the traffic on the highway, thinking about how everyone seemed to be in such a rush, and about how even though he was on a timeline himself he didn't nearly cause an accident to make it. The one car that didn't seem to be in a hurry, that almost seemed to be keeping pace with him, was a red convertible with the top up. _Why was the top up? _Every time Caim stopped at a highway intersection or under a sign or just stopped to eat something from his backpack the car was always there, either parked or cruising by.

Caim opened his eyes and looked around the dark alley, checking for any flash of colour. None. _It was a coincidence, I'm being paranoid. Why would anyone want to follow some sketchy kid on the side of a highway? _He cursed himself for figuring out the answer. '_Cause a sketchy kid on the side of a highway probably needs a ride… _The warning used by so many parents came to his mind: _Don't accept rides from strangers. _He let out sharp laugh and pulled his bag closer to his side, sliding down the wall a little more to rest his head on the top of his pack. He needed to get some rest before he was forced awake by the rising city.

He closed his eyes and was starting to drift off when he heard a commotion from down the alley. A group of people were coming towards him, the unmistakable smell of alcohol and cigarettes preceding them as they kicked over garbage cans. Caim slowly got to his feet, shouldering his bag and hoping that they would just walk by him. _Yeah right. Why do I hope?_

As they passed him they didn't stop, but then the trailing member stumbled sideways, clearly drunk, and fell into Caim. "Wha-!" The guy tripped back as Caim shouldered him and took off, not in the mood at all to deal with drunks. He had only made it a couple steps when his neck connected with something fleshy and solid, sending him flat on his back, gasping for air as he struggled to get up. Someone hauled him to his feet by the front of his sweater and his backpack was yanked off his arms.

"Who the hell are you?" the guy demanded.

_No one. _Caim didn't reply and blinked a couple times to try and get his night vision to kick in. As it did he found the guy's face unusually close to his. "Listen," Caim said. "Just put me down and we won't have an issue."

The guy laughed. "Hear that? We won't have an issue."

A chorus of laughs rang from around them and Caim tried to count how many individuals he could hear. _At least five… damn. _"How about this then," Caim told him. "I have some stuff you guys may be interested in. Put me down, I'll give it to you, and you'll let me leave. Sounds good?"

More laughter. Caim sighed; he really was not in the mood to fight right now. "Come on guys-"

"You think we're all guys, retard?" a female voice snapped.

_Well I did. _"No-" A punch to his stomach caught him off guard, as did the release of his shirt. He dropped to his knees, catching his breath.

"Bastard," the girl hissed.

_I've heard that before. _He slowly got to his feet. "I'm serious. I'll give you guys what you want-"

"What do you think we want?" the first guy asked.

"I don't know, but I bet I'll have it." Caim straightened and looked around to see six blurry figures surrounding him. The one holding his bag was off to his right. As he reached a hand out and opened his mouth to speak a burst of pain flared up in his right hand. He gritted his teeth together, yanking his hand back. _No. Please no. _He gripped his hand tightly in his left but could see light filtering through his fingers. _Light? _

"What the hell's going on man?" a different guy asked.

"What do you want?" Caim said through clenched teeth. "Name it."

"You've gotta be shittin' me," the first guy said. "You got nothing."

"What do you want!?" Caim shouted. The pain from his hand was killing him, just like the pain from his right shoulder, his other hand, and his right forearm had.

"Dude's psycho," another guy observed.

_Psycho. Yeah. Sure. I'm crazy. Let's go with that. _"Let's go with that," Caim grunted. "So just leave me my bag and scram."

"Scram?" the girl laughed. "Wow man, you _must _be crazy to talk like that."

Caim groaned and bowed his head despite knowing that it made him an easy target.

"Drugs or booze," the first guy told him. "You got that Crazy Man?"

"Yeah, I do." He sucked in a breath between his teeth. "Pass me my bag." He heard a thud at his feet and got on his knees, opening his backpack with his left hand while he kept his right hand in his pocket. He pulled out a Ziploc bag and a pill bottle from a side pocket and tossed it at the feet of the girl before tugging a small bottle of some sort of alcohol – he never cared what kind when he bought it – and holding it out to where the leader stood in front of him. "There," Caim said, suddenly exhausted. The pain was ebbing away but discomfort was setting in and he knew it would be a long night. "I've given you what you want, now leave."

"I love how he thinks he can tell us what to do," the girl cooed. "So cute." She made a gagging noise. "Makes me sick." She nonetheless bent over and picked up the drugs at her feet.

"Chill out," one of the other guys told her.

"Yeah, relax," the leader said. He took the bottle from Caim's hand. "You're lucky dude," he explained.

_Whatever you say, just leave. _

"Let's go," the leader continued. "But first-"

The guy's boot connected with Caim's head and he fell back hard against the concrete. The last thing he heard before he passed out was the group of drunks laughing as they walked away.


	6. Chapter 6

Caim came around to the sound of a woman screaming. He winced as the noise stabbed into his already pounding head and he attempted to sit up. The world spun and he fell back, smacking his head off the ground. A groan escaped his lips and the lady shouted again, some sequence of numbers –_ Just shut up… Please. _– and he heard her shoes rushing over to him.

"Just don't move," she told him franticly. _'Cause I'm totally going to get up and run a marathon. _"Help is on its way." _Help? Damn._

He tried to sit up again but the lady rested a hand on his chest, holding him down. "Don't move," she repeated. "You'll be ok, you'll be ok." _Wonderful. You're consoling yourself._

He moved her hand away with his left hand and kept his eyes closed as he sat up. If his eyes weren't open he wouldn't have to see the world spinning around him.

"You shouldn't move, you're bleeding, you need to lie down."

_Bleeding? _His stomach contracted as he felt the stickiness on the side of his neck. His body started to shake and he thought he might pass out again. Raising a hand he touched his head, where the guy had kicked him the night before, and automatically wished he hadn't. _Damn. Oh damn… _He bent his head, suppressing the bile rising in his throat, and squeezed his eyes closed.

Another pair of footsteps came over and suddenly something was being pressed to the side of his head. Caim pulled away and ended up falling onto his side.

"Don't worry, we're going to help you," the lady told him, touching his arm. _I don't care. Leave me alone._

"I-" He swallowed. "I'll be fine."

The lady was silent, probably surprised by his voice, and he took the time to stumble to his feet, reaching out with his hand for something to hold onto. Upon finding nothing he tripped the couple steps over to where he knew the wall was. Leaning up against the wall he managed to get his eyes open, and quickly diverted them; right in front of him, where he had surely been laying, was a pool of blood.

"Son, sit down. The ambulance is on its way." That was a male's voice, and when Caim opened his eyes he saw him standing next to the lady who was now standing from her knelt position on the ground.

_Ambulance? No. No no no no…_He shook his head and then paused and waited for the world to go from a whirlwind to slightly tipsy. Taking a deep breath he looked around for his bag and found it sitting beside the lady. "Can I-" He took a breath, trying to keep the pool of blood out of his peripheral vision. "Can I have my bag?" he asked.

"You should sit down first," the man told him. Caim sighed and took a step forward. "My bag," he said simply.

The man picked up his bag and held it away from him. Caim ran a hand through his hair, avoiding his head wound, and took a minute before he spoke. "Please," he said. _I can't believe I'm begging for my own bag. This is so wrong… _"I-I need to get out of here. My bag, please."

"Are you in some sort of trouble?" the lady asked, her eyes widening.

_You have no idea. _"Can I please just have my bag?" He added a firm tone to his words, hoping that they'd finally get it and just give him his bag.

"Just wait another minute. The ambulance will be here, they'll take you to get fixed up, then you can take your bag and leave," the man explained.

_You don't get it do you? I'm not leaving in the ambulance. So just give me my bag and let me leave. _He stepped up to the guy as steadily as he could and held his hand out. "My bag." His voice was hard now, cold.

The guy looked him up and down and slowly held out his bag. "We're just trying to help," he told him.

_You're trying to help the wrong person. _"I know, and thank you." Caim softened his voice a tad. "But the one way you could help me is by telling me what day it is today."

The guy looked at him strangely. "June twelfth," he replied slowly.

_June twelfth? _"Do you… is there a train station here? Like an Amtrak?"

"Yeah. A couple blocks over…"

"Thanks."

Caim slung his bag over his shoulder and stumbled as the extra weight made him tip over. He righted himself as he pulled the backpack on properly, feeling the eyes of the man and lady boring into him. Caim cast them both a look and the tiniest of smiles before setting off, hoping that he'd be able to make it on the train before passing out again. Crashing last night, literally, had caused him to sleep better than any pill or over consumption of alcohol had ever done, but he still felt completely drained. _Yeah, I doubt I'll make it to the station…_

Despite his doubts and with the eyes of the man and lady following him, he set off. Using signs on street posts to help direct him he finally got to the station and let out a deep breath. _I actually made it. _When he lifted his head to go into the building he noticed a red convertible sitting in the parking lot. _You have got to be joking. _He turned his eyes away and hurried into the station, barely considering the idea that it wasn't the one from the highway the day before.

Ahead of him in line for tickets was a girl with long red hair pulled into a ponytail. The one thing Caim found weird was that she didn't have any bags with her. As he waited for the line to move he pulled his bag off and rummaged through one of the side pockets for his money. He pulled it out and stuffed it into his pocket before swinging his backpack on. He stumbled sideways a bit as he did and the girl turned to look at him; he quickly looked at the floor. _Please don't talk to me._

"Are you ok?"

_Of course you talked to me._

"You…" She paused and Caim could almost picture the look on her face. "You're bleeding-"

Caim raised his head and forced a small smile onto his face. "That's not blood," he explained. "Leftover hair dye."

"But it's all down your neck-"

"Yeah, I know. My friends are idiots when they're drunk. I didn't have time to wash it off."

"Oh." She gave him a smile but he could tell it was fake. "Alright, but where are you going in such a hurry?"

_None of your business. _

Luckily at that point it was her turn to walk up to the ticket booth.

"Where are you going?" she asked again.

_Just get your ticket and let's hope we aren't going the same way._

"I'm actually just pricing the tickets, my car's outside," she said.

Caim froze. _The red convertible…_

"If you're going our way we could give you a drive."

_We…? _"I doubt that we are," he replied. He stepped around her to get to the booth but she spoke up. "Even if you aren't we could still give you a drive. At least to a hospital maybe?"

_Of course she didn't believe that. _"I'm fine," he replied. He stepped up to the ticket booth and ordered a one way ticket to New York, all the while talking in a hushed tone so the girl couldn't hear. When he turned back around she was still standing there, hands in the pockets of her jeans, looking like she had nowhere else she'd rather be. Caim took a breath before speaking. "Thanks for the offer, but no. I don't take rides from strangers." _I sound like a child. _

She smiled. "You're smart," she said.

_Thanks, I guess._ He headed down the hall towards the platforms, half expecting her to follow him. At the end of the hall, just before he stepped out onto the platform, he turned to see if she was still standing in the lobby. To his relief, she wasn't. _Freaky chick. _


	7. Chapter 7

The ride felt long, which would usually have put Caim on edge despite the fact that he slept the entire trip. He woke up just before they pulled into Penn Station and he was one of the first off the car, trying to put as much space between himself and widely public as possible in New York City. He kept his head bent, his eyes down, and his shoulders hunched as he slid between the street traffic, searching for some sort of back alley. Upon finding one he relaxed a little, stood up straighter, and raised his eyes. _That's better._

Winding around New York City through its alleys and backstreets wasn't as difficult as he had predicted, but then again he knew the general layout of the city, though even with his knowledge he had to peek out onto a main street every once in a while to check his location.

Eventually when he exited onto a street he spotted a cemetery down the road and he froze. _I didn't… I didn't think I'd find it _this _fast… _He swallowed and took a step back, into the shadows behind him, an ache throbbing in his chest. _Mia… _

He turned and bolted down the alley he had come from. He hadn't expected this, hadn't _wanted _this. He knew that leaving two days earlier than he had to was extreme, but there was nothing in Hudson for him. Now he was early, in a city that he wanted _no _part of, and he had to face the future of two days from now. _What am I going to do until then?_

He stopped and looked around, glad to see that he had no idea where he was. Taking a deep breath he tried to sort out anything he needed to do. As he cast his eyes around he caught sight of his gloveless hand. With a shiver traveling up his spine he sat down to inspect his newest mark. It was a yellowish orb, about the size of the palm of his hand with rays casting out to between his fingers and partially onto the miniature limbs themselves. He frowned at the new tattoo, as he had stared at the other three.

Looking around to make sure no one was coming he huddled farther back into the space between two dumpsters he had sat in and shrugged his bag off. He then pulled off his sweater and tugged his left glove off as well and pushing up his right sleeve.

Lying on the palm of his left hand was the red cross that was so familiar so hospitals. He had gotten that about six months earlier after drunkenly falling off the edge of a bridge he was walking across and giving himself a gash right up the back of his right calve. The cut had healed a bit, but he had still been forced to stitch the wound closed himself. He shuddered at the thought and the mental images of all the blood…

He quickly turned his attention away from his own memories.

On his right forearm sat a slim silver sword that rested in his flesh with the end of its hilt touching the inside of his elbow and the tip of the blade residing where his wrist joined his hand. He had gotten that two weeks ago when he had cut his hand open at the restaurant.

His last mark was his oldest and the only one he would even consider wanting to keep. It was the intricate ball of fire that sat on the back of his right shoulder: the last spot on him that Mia had ever touched.

He glanced at the three tattoos within his immediate sight and felt his lips pull back into a face of disgust. _What on Earth am I? Nothing of Earth… _He quickly covered the marks up, pulling his sweater back on and getting other right glove from his bag. Once fully covered he felt safer and more in control. He knew that his curses had a mind of their own but it was nice to think that he had some say in their appearances.

He gazed around himself, trying to think of anything that would require his attention at the moment. As though that thought were a probe his head started to ache and he remembered the kick from last night. He slowly raised his hand and touched his head, feeling the dried blood caked onto his black hair. _I must look like something out of a horror flick. Some sort of zombie or vampire or something. _This brought a small smile to his lips.

He moved his hand down his neck, scratching off the dried liquid, thinking about whether or not to use the water in his pack to clean himself off. _I don't know when it'll rain next, and I can always fill the bottle somewhere. _That decided he pulled the water bottle out from his bag and poured the contents over his head, running his fingers through his hair to try and clean it out. He'd have proper shower the next time it rained or if he was in a position to borrow a real one.

The water that trickled from his head found its way down his shirt and only then did he realize how hot he was. He usually didn't pay attention to the temperature as he'd prefer to be covered than to not be hot, but whenever it was brought to his attention he felt it. _No time for that. _

To try and get his thoughts on something else he stood and put his water bottle away before glancing around. He'd walk around for the day, find somewhere to stay for the night, and then make his way back to the cemetery tomorrow. Only on the fourteen would he set foot there.


	8. Chapter 8

One thing Caim had become used to during his trips around the eastern part of the country's alleyways and back streets were the gang signs and helpful tags. There were certain symbols that would alert a street person to the amount of police activity or to where there was a dry place to sleep. Caim kept alert for a few, typically the ones telling about the police, but he mostly kept tabs on the ones that mutants would put up. There was one certain image though, an 'M' within a circle around it done in red, a copy off of the _V for Vendetta _logo. Beneath the image were always a date and an arrow. This one particular symbol would alert any mutant who happened to see it that a public meeting would be organized on the date below the image in the direction that the arrow pointed in.

As Caim headed aimlessly down a back street he noticed the image spray painted above a series of garbage cans. Pausing he checked the date and the direction he was surprise he hadn't missed it, the meeting would be tonight. _Coincidences are stupid but wow... _He glanced in the direction that the arrow was pointing and realized that the venue was behind him. The tag never explained where, just in case some humans or police wanted to crash their party, so it was up to the invited to figure out where to go.

He turned around and headed back in the direction he had come, thinking back on his first meeting. He had been sleeping in an old abandoned church in Boston when the sounds of several footsteps and the dragging of furniture had woke him up. He had pulled his switchblade out of his pant pocket and cautiously gone upstairs from the basement, hoping to just talk with the people and get out at soon as he could.

When he hit the top of the stairs he noticed that two of the people moving furniture didn't look human. One had what looked like green snake scales climbing up the side of his neck and on the back of his hands and the other girl had pink hair with what looked like bones growing out of her shoulder blades and other spots on her body. Automatically he knew that they were mutants, who else would look like that? The boy had glanced over just at that moment and looked him up and down, a playful smile creasing his lips. "Hey," he had said.

Caim had taken a step back towards the stairs, unsure of what to do.

"We're not going to hurt you," the boy said. "We may look freaky but we're not-"

"You guys are mutants right?" Caim asked before he realized what he was saying.

The boy and the girl exchanged a look before the boy looked back at him and nodded. "Yessssss."

"I think I am too..." Again he spoke before he realized what he was saying.

The boy laughed. "You think? Alright. Well why do you think that?"

Caim had been reluctant to show him but after a couple seconds he released the fire from his shoulder and focused intently on it as it created a ring around him that didn't touch the floor. After a moment he released the power and the fire disappeared.

He looked up and saw the boy smiling; the girl had gone off to help move the rest of the pews out of the way for whatever they were doing. "Niccccccce," the boy said. "Ssssso you a pyro or ssssssomething?"

"No. It's a tattoo..." Caim had stood up a little straighter then, and lowered the blade he still held. As he did the other boy seemed to notice the weapon and took a small step back. Caim had forced a small smile and closed it, slipping it back into his pocket. "I'm not going to hurt you."

The boy laughed and stepped up to him, holding out his scaled hand. "I'm Riley."

Caim had looked at the hand but hadn't taken it. "Kyle," he replied, still not comfortable enough to give up his real name.

"Niccccce to meet you. Sssssso what you doing here? Are you jusssssst really early for the meeting?"

Caim had raised an eyebrow. "What meeting?""

Riley laughed. "Yeah, you probably wouldn't have come up with a blade if you had known about the meeting." He smiled and Caim couldn't help but note that he had a really nice smile. "It'sssss a public meeting for mutantsssss. There'sssss one around here about once a month, twiccccce a month depending on what'sssss going on in our world. You should ssssstick around for it."

At that moment Caim had decided he wouldn't but he offered his help with setting up. Halfway through setting up he thought that maybe it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, so he had stayed. That had led him to staying for the night and listening to a couple of people talk about mutant rights versus homo Sapien rights. He had never been one for politics but hearing how the mutant community was generally treated made him feel the angriest that he had been since his father had killed Mia.

That was when finally understood why he did it.


	9. Chapter 9

That night's meeting was being held in a rec center, though how the group got the gym was beyond Caim's knowledge.

The minute that Caim stepped in through the back doors his name was called.

"Kyle!" Riley waved to him from across the room where he was helping to set up a couple of speakers. Caim let himself smile as he walked over. "Hey," he greeted. He was glad to see Riley as he hadn't seen the snake-boy in a couple months since a meeting in Virginia.

"It'sssss great to sssssee you," Riley said in his snake-like lisp, smiling.

_You have no idea._ "Same here." Caim looked around. "How did you guys get the space?" He found that he had a habit of speaking without thinking around the snake-boy.

"My boyfriend volunteersssss here a couple timessss a month, sssssso he assssked if he could rent the sssspacccce for the night."

Caim blinked. _You're gay? And you have a boyfriend? Of course you do… _"Who's your boyfriend?" He looked around.

"Aaron. He'ssss the one with the blonde hair over by the tablessssss at the back."

Caim located the blonde that Riley was mentioning and nodded. "Cool. He looks nice."

"He isssss."

Caim looked over at Riley who was smiling at him, showing a set of fangs that protruded from where his canines should have been.

"Is there anything I can do to help? I know the meeting won't start for a while," Caim asked.

Riley laughed quietly and jumped down from the stage he had been standing on. He looked Caim up and down and Caim looked away. _I must look like something that just crawled off the side of the highway... Dang, I am something that just crawled off the side of the highway. _He resisted the urge to run a hand through his hair.

"What happened?" Riley asked, touching the gash on Caim's head.

Caim pulled his head back and went to open his mouth when Riley interrupted him.

"Don't tell me 'nothing'." Riley's green eyes appraised him again and Caim focused on anywhere but those two orbs. He noted the snakebite piercings below Riley's bottom lip and the eyebrow piercing above his left eye. He wondered whether his green bangs were died or if they were natural and he couldn't understand how Riley could keep his hair so long that it was pulled into a ponytail.

"Wow. You two are practically undressing each other with your eyes." The new voice laughed. "Is there something I should know, Riley?"

Caim looked away from Riley to find himself looking up at Aaron. Riley's boyfriend was a few inches taller than Caim with calm grey eyes that seemed to be reading Caim even more than Riley's eyes were. _Whoa. _He quickly looked away, his hands twitching at his sides.

"Aaron, this is Kyle, an old friend. We met about sssssix or sssssseven monthssssss ago at a meeting in Bossssston."

"Oh, this is the guy that Marrow was telling me about."

Caim glanced around to see if the pink haired girl was present.

"Well it's good to meet you." He held out a hand and Caim took a small step back. Riley raised an eyebrow but his kind smile told Caim that he wasn't upset. "Kyle'sssss not really a sssssocial guy," Riley explained, taking his boyfriend's hand.

"Oh, sorry," Aaron said.

Caim shook his head and as he did he felt something in him shift. It felt unnatural, like a switch had just been flicked on in his head, and despite the sudden relaxation that he felt he couldn't help but want to run. That thought soon eased away and Caim shifted into a better stance. "It's alright," he replied.

Riley smiled and let go of Aaron's hand, instead reaching to take Caim's. Caim would have jerked away instinctively as he had done with Aaron but instead he felt himself allowing Riley's scaled hand to close around his gloved one and walk him across the hall while Riley shouted over his shoulder, "Be back in a minute!" He led Caim out of the gym and down a hall to the washroom. As they stepped into the white tilted room Caim felt the switch return to normal and he quickly pulled his hand away, stumbling back a step from the other male. Riley turned to look at him, a small smile on his lips. "I guessssed that Aaron got in your head."

Caim felt his eyes widen. _Got in my head? _He felt as though all the air had been sucked from his lungs and he couldn't take in any more. The idea of having someone in his head made him feel sick and he had hoped that Aaron hadn't seen anything-

"Easssssy Kyle." Riley reached a hand to touch his shoulder but stopped it a couple inches from Caim's body. "He'sssss not a mind reader or anything, jussssssst an empath."

_Empath? What the hell is that? _He took another step back towards the door, wanting to get outside and get some air.

"An empath is able to ssssenssssse other'sssss emotionsss and change them. He musssssst have ssssenssssed how tensssse you are and tried to help you."

Caim swallowed. _So he wasn't really in my head… _He took a breath and felt that his lungs accepted it. Riley gave him a kind smile. "Do you want ssssome help getting cleaned up before the meeting?" he asked.

Caim shook his head once. "I'm fine."

Riley met his gaze and Caim felt that he couldn't break away from the other male's unblinking stare. _Do snakes blink? _

"At leasssst with that cut. It looksssss really bad."

"It wasn't. I fell the other night."

"And you got that?" Riley nodded. "Ssssure." He turned to the sink and grabbed a handful of paper towels, running them under the tap. "Come here."

_He's different than last time… _Riley had been flirty the other two times when they had hung out together, but maybe that was before he had gotten together with Aaron.

The thought disintegrated when Caim didn't move and Riley spoke. "Come here," he repeated. "I don't bite." He turned his head to look at Caim and smiled, showing off his fangs again. "Not unlesssssss you want me to."

_So maybe he's not completely different._


	10. Chapter 10

Caim stood towards the back of the gym near the doors so that he could see everything and have somewhere to go if something happened. His shifted his shoulders, not used to not having the weight of his backpack behind him. Riley had taken it from him after they had left the bathroom, saying that he would store it with his stuff in another room so that Caim wouldn't have to worry about it. Part of Caim liked that he didn't have the bulky accessory but the other part of him longed for the security that having it gave him.

He took a breath and slid his hands into his pockets, looking around the room. It was pretty busy but not the busiest one that Caim had been too, though that wasn't saying a lot since he'd only been to four. _That one in D.C back in April was pretty big... _

"Excuse me everyone?"

The simple polite tone caught everyone's attention and the crowd instantly went silent; if this meeting was going to be as serious as it was sounding then no one wanted to miss anything.

"Thank you." The male up at the podium looked out at them with a strained smile.

_This guy really doesn't want to be talking does he?_

The speaker took a breath before shifting into what was probably a more comfortable stance. "There's no way to sugar coat what we need to talk about today, and I need to say right now that no matter your reactions there is to be no fighting tonight." His last couple words were stressed and clipped; he meant business. "We have been lucky enough to gain this secure space and if anything happens to it you'll be fixing it beyond perfection. Do I make myself clear?"

Caim couldn't help but let a smile twitch on his lips. The guy looked like a grown up kid with his bright blue eyes and shaggy blonde hair. He looked like the type of guy that would work at a pet store with all the girls fawning over him. _Not my type. _Caim drew his attention elsewhere and started glancing around the room to see if he recognised anyone.

"Good, so let's get started…" His voice trailed off but then he quickly scrambled to keep speaking. "As everyone knows Senator Kelley, with the help of William Stryker, is trying to institute the Mutant Registration Act."

There was a mutter of voices despite that everyone knew, whether they went to the meeting in D.C or not, that it was going on. Caim felt himself tense and his shoulder start to burn. He quickly shook his head and clenched and unclenched his fists in the hope that it would calm his tattoos.

"Well Senator Kelley has something new for the mutant community as well. In my opinion it's worse than the Act."

"What could be worse than the act!?" someone shouted. "What could be worse than a modern day Auschwitz?!" 

_How about you be quiet and we'll find out._

"How about something that will strip us of everything that we are?" the speaker shot back. "And nothing can compare to Auschwitz so don't be dramatic."

The Auschwitz guy shut up but, as Caim could see him a couple feet away, he still fumed. Caim looked away from him as the speaker took a breath.

_For a child look-a-like he sure knows how to shut people down._

"The government and some of the world's top medical companies have created a supposed 'cure' for the mutant problem-"

"Mutant problem!?" several people exclaimed at once. Caim winced slightly at the sudden noise.

_Let him finish guys._

"How did they make a cure?" someone demanded.

"That's for them to know and us to worry about," the speaker replied. "All I know is that a source has told us that the government is in the process of planning its release and that it is supposed to work."

"How do they know that it'll work?" another person asked.

"My guess is that they've tested it."

"What mutant would let sssssomeone do that to them?" Caim heard Riley ask.

"Who knows," the speaker replied, shrugging a shoulder. "All we know is that it's been made and it's going to be publicized. Everyone in the mutant community will be confronted with the decision about whether or not to take it-"

"Who would want to take it?" someone else asked.

Caim swallowed and looked down, not able to keep his gaze away from his hands.

"A lot of people would," the speaker replied. "We need to remember that some people have a harder time with being themselves than others, or perhaps they have a physical mutation that they don't want or can't hide. We need to respect everyone's decision."

"But there's nothing to cure!" Aaron combated. "We're made the way we're made. They haven't come up with a cure for African-Americans or Asians or anyone from another culture. There's nothing wrong with us."

_My father would have loved to see a cure for everyone._

"Some think differently," the speaker explained. "Now, I've done my bit and I've voiced my opinions-" _That you're on both sides? Or that you actually don't have one? _"-so I think it's time to bring an expert in."

A low murmur ran through the crowd as the grown up kid stepped down and another man stepped up to the microphone. He fixed his tie with a large blue hand and Caim blinked, taken aback. _And I thought Riley and Marrow had a physical mutation. _All the skin that was visible was covered in blue, but whether it was his skin or fur Caim couldn't tell. His whole face was covered in it too and a neatly combed head of blue hair rested on his head. His tux fit him well but it was too formal and he wore what seemed like a pair of too small glasses over a pair of shining blue eyes that locked with Caim's as he looked his way.

Caim quickly turned his to a spot on the floor.

"Welcome everyone," the man introduced. "I'll try to keep this short as I know that many of you wish to discuss the issue amongst yourselves. What Blaine-" _Grown up kid. _"-has told you is true, the government as created a cure-"

"Why are you repeating what we've been told!?" a guy called out.

"Because Blaine said that it is a supposed cure, indicating that it doesn't work, but I know for a fact that it does."

Caim snapped his attention back to the blue man.

"How do you know?" a girl asked.

"Because I've seen it. While I believe the cure is unneeded and will only cause more problems, I do know that it works." He paused to look around the entire room. "The government will not be forcing it on anyone, you will all have the choice to take it, but there is the choice. I hope you all make a decision that will benefit yourself and not what others want you to do." He gave them all a kind smile before stepping back.

That was when the door to the right of Caim opened and a girl walked in, pushing her green hood off of her brown hair. She brushed a set of white bangs- _Are dyed bangs a fad in the mutant community now? _-out of her face as she turned to him and spoke: "What did Ah miss?"

_Only the fact that our whole world has just turned upside down. _


	11. Chapter 11

"-so we apparently have a choice." Aaron finished explaining the meeting to the new girl - _Rogue _– who was sipping from a Coke can. They and Caim were sitting around a small circular table towards the front of the room talking over the other voices and the music. Caim leaned back in his chair and ran a hand through his hair, glancing at the girl out of the corner of his eye.

"Wha' do y'all think?" she asked.

_How does she keep her twang up here in New York? _

"About taking it?" Aaron asked.

"Ya."

"There's no need, there's nothing to cure. There's nothing wrong with us."

Rogue set her Coke can down and that was when Caim noticed that she too wore gloves, though hers were brown and seemed to be thinner than Caim's. Rogue caught his eye and he glanced away, tugging his own coverings up higher on his wrists.

"Says you," Caim mumbled.

"What?"

Caim's attention snapped up to Riley who had just appeared in front of him with two more cans of Coke in his scaled hands.

"What did you sssssay Kyle?"

_Nothing. _"Says you," Caim replied slowly, though he couldn't believe that he was actually allowing the words to pass his lips. He didn't want to get into an argument with Aaron or Riley. "Not all of us like our powers, or want them. Some of us don't want to have to hide them."

"You don't have to hide yoursssss Kyle. I've sssssseen it and it lookssss like normal a tattoo."

Caim remembered how during one of the meetings he had pulled off his sweater in the bathroom to change and he hadn't seen Riley standing behind him. _So stupid of me._ The shirt Caim had been wearing underneath had a burn hole over his fire tattoo.

"I have more now-"

"Ssssso?"

A thick silence hung over the table and Caim looked away, though that didn't mean that Riley did; Caim could still feel his stare boring into him.

"What about you?" Caim asked. "You have to hide yours when you go out." _You'd have trouble passing those off as tattoos._

"I don't care though. I just do it. I would walk around without conccccealer if I could-"

"If you could." Caim turned his attention back to the snake boy. "And you can. Will you do it?"

"No."

"Because you're ok with yourself and you're ok with your powers. Some of us aren't."

He looked over at Rogue –_ She seems to be on my side here. -_ at this point, who met his gaze.

"It's true," she said with a slight shrug.

_Exactly._

"Don't get it guys," Aaron said.

"You can't tell us whether or not ta," Rogue snapped.

Aaron sighed and Caim thought that he saw a shade of red seep into the other male's eyes. _What the heck?_

"Rogue!" The deep voice of the blue man carried over to them and Caim looked over. _He knows her? _

"Riley, Aaron!"

_And them too._

The man smiled as he arrived at their table and Caim noticed Rogue smile a little. "Hello Mr. McCoy."

Mr. McCoy gave them a kind smile, resting his hand on Aaron's shoulder. Aaron and Riley switched glances and Caim shifted where he sat, looking at the ground. He felt his agitation diminish and when he looked up he noticed that the others seemed calmer; the red shade in Aaron's eyes was gone.

_What was that?_

"And who is this?" Mr. McCoy asked.

_Me? _Caim turned his attention to the man whose blue exterior turned out to be fur. _And I thought scales were different._

"He'sssss a friend of mine," Riley replied.

Caim smiled inwardly.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Mr. McCoy said, extending his hand. "Hank McCoy."

"Kyle," Caim replied, shaking his hand.

Mr. McCoy smiled and looked around at their group. "So what you are discussing?"

"The cure," Aaron replied, "and whether or not to take it."

"Do some of you think it's a good idea?" Mr. McCoy glanced around the group but his eyes lingered on Rogue a little longer than anyone else.

_Why's he looking at her like that?_

"I do," Caim admitted, crossing his arms.

Mr. McCoy met his gaze. "Oh. May I ask why?"

Caim shrugged a shoulder, as though it didn't matter. "I just don't want my powers. Never have and I doubt I ever will."

"Has anyone ever taught you how to use your powers?"

_Of course not. Who would teach a mutant how to use their powers unless their parents are mutants too?_

He didn't reply.

"Alright. Well it is your choice-" He looked at Aaron. "-and no one should tell you differently." He smiled then, and clapped Aaron on the back. "Well, I send my well wishes to you all. Have a good night." He left, whistling quietly to himself with his hands in his pockets.

"Doessss he ssssstill teach at the ssschool?" Riley asked, turning to Rogue, who half nodded.

"Kinda. He drops bah with Miss. Dugan every couple weeks." She took a sip from her pop, and just as she did the door to the back of the gym where she had entered banged open.

"Rogue." The guy saying her name wasn't asking if she was there, but simply demanding that she acknowledge the fact. Caim looked over to see a brown haired guy, probably around his age, with ruby coloured glasses stride into the room. He didn't push people out of his way, but moved around them without saying anything when he bumped them. "What are you doing here?" he asked when he reached their table.

_Like you don't know._

Caim crossed his arms and didn't move, even though the guy was standing just a couple inches too close.

Rogue glared up at him from her seat. "When Ah called for a ride home Ah didn't ask for you."

"Hey Ssscott."

The guy – _Scott – _looked over at Riley, who was smiling at him. Aaron stood behind him and was giving Scott a level look that betrayed no emotion.

"Long time no sssee."

"Hello Riley, Aaron." Scott gave each of them a slight nod before turning back to Rogue. "We're going home. Now."

"You are." Rogue took another drink. "Ah'm stayin'."

"Rogue." His voice was slightly menacing now, but Caim had a feeling that it was more of a show than anything; he didn't look like a violent person. _You can't be violent in pressed jeans with your shirt tucked in._

"Leave her alone," Caim told him, though he didn't raise his voice.

Scott turned to face him, looking him up and down. "And you are…?"

"Kyle."

"Well, Kyle, if you would be so kind as to stay out of other people's business that would great." He turned back to Rogue. "We are going. Now."

"Let her stay Scott," Aaron told him. "I'll drive her home after it's done."

"Thank you Aaron, but the professor wants her back now."

Rogue swore under her breath and stood, finishing her Coke in a last swig. "Fuck. Fahn." She looked at Caim. "Nice ta meet ya, hope ta see ya 'round." Then she left, making it obvious with her loud footsteps and burning gaze that she was not going voluntarily. Caim watched her go with something like admiration and awe. _She sure knows how to make an exit._

From behind him Aaron sighed and Riley laughed a bit. Caim turned to face them and found them smiling slightly at each other.

Looking away Caim stuck his hands in his pockets, pretending to glance at the clock behind the metal netting set high up on the wall. "I should head out," he said.

"Really?"

_No. _He looked over to see Riley staring at him, frowning slightly.

"Do you have to?"

_No… _"Yeah. I'm meeting someone."

Riley was quiet for a moment and Caim didn't let himself think about Riley wanting him to stay.

"Alright," the snake-boy replied finally. "Let'ssss go get your stuff and… yeah."

He turned and started to make his way through the crowd, but not before Aaron kissed his forehead. It took a second but Caim quickly followed him, wanting to leave as soon as he could.

When they reached the door where Caim's bag was stashed Riley turned and faced him. "Don't lie to me Kyle, pleassssse. Why are you leaving?"

_Don't ask. _"I told you."

"Then who are you meeting?"

"A friend." _That's a piece of the truth…_

Riley stared at him, his yellow eyes boring into Caim's. "You know Aaron isssss here now. Drop by every oncccccce in while and you and I can hang out."

_Don't look so hopeful, please. _"Ok."

Riley ran a hand over his hair, tugging at the end of his ponytail before unlocking the room and grabbing Caim's bag from just inside the door. After he finished relocking the door and Caim shouldered his pack Riley stepped up to him and gave him a hug. Caim froze, not able to move for a minute, but then he felt Riley start to pull away and he hugged him back, not wanting him to let go yet. _Don't think like that Caim. Do not think like that. You're just going to kill yourself._

"Don't get the cure," Riley told him. "Ssssstay the way you are."

Caim closed his eyes. _Of course. Not like he was going to say anything else._

"Come vissssit."

_Would love to, but nope. _"I will."

"Good." Riley pulled away and gave him a slightly flirty grin. "Sssso I'll sssssee you around."

_Stop saying that. _Caim forced himself to give Riley a slight smile back. "Yeah." He paused. "Bye." Then he turned and left, not intending on coming back.


	12. Chapter 12

Two days later Caim stood in front of the gates to the cemetery he had avoided before. At his side he carried a bouquet of dandelions and other flowers that he had picked from a park earlier in the morning. It was just going seven A.M and the street was mercifully low key. _As low key as a street in New York City can get that is. _

He took a deep breath and bit his lip. _I can do this. There's no way I'm not going to. Even if I stand here all day, I will go in there before midnight. _Despite trying to give himself a pep talk it took him another couple minutes to put one foot in front of the other and slowly start his walk across the street. _Wouldn't it be ironic if I got hit by a car on my way to see her? _He laughed.

Once he entered the cemetery it was as though he had stepped through a vacuum, as though the gates and fence were a barrier that didn't allow the outside street noise to penetrate the sacred land. Instantly Caim felt himself relax, his shoulders lower, and his heart rate slow. _Maybe I should visit these places more often. _He knew he wouldn't do it though.

As he slowly walked down the road that led through the large space he could see a few people here and there visiting their own relatives, he even saw a burial with a large group of black clad family members and friends. _Rest in peace... _He sent the thought out before picking up the pace a bit, just to pass the scene. He hated funerals.

Just before he came across the row where Mia's grave sat he spotted a brown haired woman standing from her cross-legged position in front of a headstone. As she fixed her long braid she turned her head and caught his eye. "Good morning," she greeted softly.

"Good morning," he replied.

"Nice flowers," she told him.

"Thank you."

She gave him a small smile before turning and starting down the path in the direction that Caim had come, and he watched her for a moment before continuing until he came across Mia's own headstone.

"Hi," he said softly.

He sat in front of the grave.

"I brought you some flowers..." He smiled a bit as he rested them on the ground in front of him. The headstone was a simple shape with her name and date of birth and death on it, along with an engraving in Chinese that he didn't know. "Remember when we'd make bracelets out of them in elementary school?" He picked a few up and started to twist them together like they had so many years ago. He was silent as he did, concentrating on perfection, and after several minutes when it was done he rested it on top of the stone and smiled slightly. "A kind of crown, or a halo." The word 'halo' got stuck in his throat and he coughed to clear it.

_Shouldn't I be crying?_

He ran his fingers through the grass around him and bit his lip. "So uh, I have news." He forced a smile, not looking at the grave. "I'm a mutant too." He nodded. "Yeah, I'm a mutant too. And I..." He took a breath. "I don't know what to do about it." He looked up at the stone, and he thought about how he would be telling her this all personally if she were still alive.

_Would I have still become what I am if she hadn't died? Would my... powers, have just come at a different time?_

"I met a guy named Riley who's a mutant too, but I don't want to talk to him about it." He took a deep breath. "I'm lost Mia... I'm really lost. It's like the day that we spun in circles until we fell over, and then got up and did it again and again and by the time we decided to stop we were just stumbling all over the place and weren't sure which end was up. Only… only this is worse." He stopped and looked down at his gloved hands. In a split second he was yanking them off and tossing them aside. He pressed his palms to the ground and squeezed his eyes shut. "I have two more. One on my arm and one on my... my back shoulder, on the last spot you touched." He opened his eyes. "And I have no idea what to do with them."

He pulled his hands away from the ground and dusted the dirt off of them. _No idea what to do with them, no idea what to make of them... _

"But... I didn't really want to come and go on and on about that because I know that you couldn't give me answers even if you wanted to." He forced another small smile. _This isn't as strange as I thought it would be. _"I wanted to come say hi, make sure that no one did anything to your grave, and tell you that I'll come again next year. And the year after, and the one after that. And if I can I'll try to come on your birthday. I'm sorry that I didn't come this year, but I wasn't around NYC and I didn't have the cash to make it." _And walking halfway across the state in snow wasn't a thought._

He pulled his gloves back on and kept his head bent. "I also wanted to... apologize, for what happened. I could have saved you... I saw my father's-" _Ha! Father. That title's bullshit. _"-car and I knew what was going to happen but when I tried to call to you nothing happened and you got hit and... and then I ran. And I'm sorry. For everything. For not calling. For not seeing if I could save you. For not staying. For not coming to your funeral. For not visiting you here sooner. " He took a deep breath and felt tears prick his eyes.

_Why does it seem like I've been waiting for this?_

"I'm sorry," he choked out, just as the first few tears trailed down his cheeks. "I'm so sorry Mia..." He couldn't get anything more out because that's when the first tears since he had fled the accident started to fall.


	13. Chapter 13

It took roughly an hour to collect himself enough to stand and make his way to where he had stashed his bag and collapsed, exhausted, beside it. When he woke up the sun was just starting to set. He left the alley at that point and wandered the city looking for the grungiest, vilest, most dangerous place possible. He was in one of his moods that he got into every once in a while where all that he wanted to do was lose himself completely: physically, mentally, and spiritually.

It took him a little under an hour until he found what appeared to be an old storefront, but there were people hanging out in the side alley with a large, obviously stoned, guy standing next to a door. The male didn't even so much as blink when Caim walked past him and into the building.

He stopped in his tracks as a wave of music and the smell of sweat and weed swept over him, and it took all his strength not to double over coughing. After a minute of standing rigid in place, he found that the smell had ebbed a bit and he was able to focus again. The room was large, the entire first floor of the building, and nearly every inch was packed with people. There was a DJ table at the far end of the room but besides that there was no furniture in the entire space.

Caim felt the little knot of tension in his stomach loosen and he allowed himself to breathe a bit more freely as he took the three short steps down into the mass of people. The music suddenly seemed a hundred times louder but that's what he wanted: something loud besides screams to overpower his thoughts.

Normally Caim would have cringed away from the crowd, shrunk away and sprinted in the opposite direction, but now he more or less ignored the bodies moving against his and the hands that tried to catch him. Across the room he noticed a guy glance his way and he quickly turned, heading in the opposite direction; he may have wanted to lose himself but he didn't necessarily want to lose himself to someone else.

He made his way across the space to a spot where there were, somehow, less people. He stood there, just looking around for a moment, but places like this with music as hypnotic as the type pounding from the speakers had a way of forcing one to move. Now Caim wasn't much of a dancer, he would joke around with Mia every once in a while but nothing outside of that, but with everyone moving around him it was easy to just close his eyes and get into the movements.

Every once in a while he'd feel a hand purposely brush against him but he blatantly ignored them, that was, until he opened his eyes at the wrong moment.

A guy stood in front of him, just a little taller than his current 5'7 stature, and all Caim could see were his icy eyes.

"Hey," the guy said, his lower voice somehow penetrating through the noise into Caim's ears.

Caim didn't reply.

The guy laughed slightly and flashed him a smile. "You got a light?" He lifted a cigarette to confirm what he meant. Caim nodded and the guy nodded back. "Cool. Thanks."

He turned away and started to head back towards the door and it took Caim a moment to realize that he was supposed to follow. When he finally got outside he found the guy standing with another male off to the side, talking and laughing. As Caim walked up to them the guy turned and smiled. Caim gave him a slight smile in response. "You needed a light?" he asked.

"Yeah." The guy handed him the cigarette and Caim turned away, as though out of the wind, and mimed pulling out a lighter. When the smoke was lit he turned back to the guy and found him a bit closer than before.

"Here," Caim said after a second, holding out the cigarette.

"Awesome." The guy took it and pulled in a long drag, exhaling the smoke through his nose. After a pause he held it back out of Caim. "Want a drag?"

Caim had never smoked, and had never intended on smoking. But hell, he hadn't intended on doing a lot of things that he had ended up doing-

-so he took the cigarette and tried to imitate the guy.

And ended up nearly coughing his lungs out.

The guy laughed a bit and took the smoke from Caim's fingers as Caim tried to get the coughing under control and regain the ability to breathe.

"Easy," the guy said, a smile evident in his voice. He rested a hand on Caim's shoulder as Caim sucked in his first controlled breath. "I'm guessing you don't smoke."

Caim shook his head and straightened, running a hand through his hair as he caught his breath.

"Fuck," he muttered, and that cause the guy to laugh again.

"Not your thing?" he asked.

"Maybe not." He forced a slight smile that probably looked more like a grimace.

The guy smiled and took another drag, looking over his shoulder at his friend who had started to talk to the bouncer. "Hey! You got that water bottle?"

The friend tossed him a bottle without looking and the guy caught it with a quiet laugh. Turning back to Caim he held the bottle out. "This'll help."

Caim eyed the bottle as he stuck his hands in his pockets.

The guy lowered the offered drink and flashed him a soft smile. "If you're thinking I'm trying to drug you, think again, I'm not that kind of guy."

_Of course you're not._

Caim shook his head once and it probably looked like he was twitching because the guy raised an eyebrow and asked, "You alright?"

"Yeah, good," Caim replied. Then, despite his internal warnings, he slid the bottle from the guy's hand and took a drink. There was no burning, so acidic taste, nothing to suggest it was any sort of alcohol. When he handed the bottle back the guy smiled at him. "Listen, my friend and I are gonna ditch this place and go chill somewhere else. You wanna come? Didn't seem like you were having a party in there."

Caim shrugged a shoulder. "Sure, not like I have any place better to be."


	14. Chapter 14

Caim woke up flat on his back, though that wasn't unusual. What was unusual was the softness he felt around him and the ache in his body that was more than what he usually felt. Slowly he opened his eyes and automatically froze, worrying that for once waking up on his back wasn't a good thing.

The bachelor apartment looked like what Caim always thought a college dorm would look like, only bigger. There was a bed pushed up in the corner with a table beside it covered in text books while the desk at the foot of the bed sat empty with only a handful of papers on top. An ashtray sat, overflowing, beside the lumpy couch Caim lay on and the whole room smelled like cigarette smoke. His head pounded with the stench and the rushing of pipes that signaled that someone was in the shower.

Slowly but surely he was able to sit up and found that he only wore his ragged t-shirt and pants; his sweater lay on the ground near the ash tray as though he had pulled it off and tossed it aside in a hurry and his shoes were nowhere to be seen. Caim suddenly wondered if the pain was from something he had never thought would happen to him.

_No. No way. I'd have my pants off right? He wouldn't go to the trouble- And I'd be in way more pain right? I wouldn't be able to sit up…_

For a minute he couldn't move, his body yelling at him to remain in the warmth that was a grey comforter wrapped around him despite hearing the warning bells ringing in his head, but then he leapt to his feet.

_You moron! You have no idea what this guy did to you! _

As he hurried around the back of the couch he noticed that there wasn't anyone else in the apartment, and that there was a whole set of clothes strewn about the space.

_Do to you?! You don't know what you did to _him!He groaned internally. _I don't want to know._

He had just passed the door to what he assumed was the bathroom when it opened and the cigarette guy from the night before stepped out with only a towel wrapped around his waist.

"Mornin' Caim."

Caim turned as he caught his name- _I told him my real name!? _– and tripped over a boot that was laying in the short hallway. The guy winced as Caim fell and crashed shoulder first into the wall.

"Fuck," the guy muttered, flinching as though he were the one to fall.

Caim pulled himself up so he was sitting and, resting his hand on the wall to steady himself, started to get to his feet. Then the guy stepped forward and he lost his footing, falling back onto his butt.

"Here." The guy held out a hand and Caim pulled away from it as though he was being offered to grab onto the blade end of a knife. _You really think I'm going to let you help me up? And how do I know where your hand's been…_

It was only then that Caim noticed that his gloves were off and a lump formed in his throat; he felt as though the rest of the colour in his face had been drained.

The guy gave him a slight smile and wrapped his hand around Caim's upper arm anyway, pulling him to his feet.

_He's stronger than he looks… that's not good._

"Nice tats," the guy said as he let Caim go.

_I'm surprised you don't have your own._

Caim took a step back and the guy glanced back into the apartment for a moment before looking back at him. "If you're going, don't you want your stuff?"

_I do, but I want to get out of here even more._

The guy paused and looked him up and down.

Caim took another step back.

"You don't look that well…" He glanced over through a doorway that must have led to the kitchen, then he looked back at Caim who had taken another step back. "

"I'm not going to hurt you," he said. "Why don't you stay for a bit and I'll cook breakfast or-"

Caim threw open the apartment door, which his hand had been reaching back for since he had started moving, and he bolted out into the hallway. He heard the guy call his name out but Caim was pretty sure that the guy wouldn't come racing after him in just a towel.

_I'm pretty sure he wouldn't race after me period._

He took the stairs two at a time and burst out through the lobby, startling several college-looking students. As he sprinted down the street, away from the building and whatever had happened in it, he ignored the voice yelling out to him from a balcony.


	15. Chapter 15

_**Six months later. December**_

Caim sat in a plastic orange chair in a white hallway, at least twenty pounds lighter than he had been the last time he had sat here and with a couple marks to prove his stay. He also wasn't wearing hand cuffs and in a prison uniform this time. _Six months… Felt like six years…_

_You're lucky you didn't get a year. If you had had your bag with you, you would have gotten _at least _that. _

_I would have gotten it, but I wouldn't have completed it._

"Caim Reglin!"

Caim stood up and turned to face the male guard that addressed him from the end of the hall. The guard beckoned him forward and Caim walked up to him, slowly and with an even pace just as instructed earlier. The man then called to a female in the booth set into the wall and exclaimed: "Single prisoner exiting." The female repeated it before pressing a button that send a loud buzzer off and the barred door in front of Caim to open. The guard and Caim nodded in acknowledgment to each other before Caim stepped out and the door was closed behind him.

Walking down the hall he took a deep breath. _Don't relax yet though, you're not out yet_

Then he turned the corner to face the automatic doors that were the only separation between him and outside. _The real outside, not The Yard outside, but real, free outside. _The thought was a little daunting, like back in June when he stood across the street from Mia's cemetery with a bouquet of flowers, too nervous to cross. _That seems like ages ago. _And just like in June it took him an extra minute before summoning up the courage to walk out the front door.

It was less windy out in the real outside in comparison to The Yard outside, but Caim still had to zip up the front of his jacket a little more and stuff his gloved hands in his pockets.

Glancing around he found himself on the edge of a parking lot that separated him from the sidewalk and road that led away from the building. Several cars were parked in the lot, all close to the front doors, except for one. A large Hummer-like vehicle was parked in the middle of the lot and Caim stopped to stare at it. The rest of the cars in the lot coincided with the number of guards at the prison at the moment; this random car was out of place, and it didn't have much snow on it so it must not have been sitting there for very long. _It's probably just a visitor's car… _

Taking a breath of real winter air he started across the lot, steering clear around the mystery car; he didn't want any sort of trouble. As he passed it though, he couldn't help but feel like someone was watching him and he turned back to look at it. With the windows rolled up and tinted Caim wasn't able to see inside, and that made him take a couple steps away while keeping his eyes on the vehicle. After a minute he turned back around and picked up the pace a little, telling himself that it wasn't just because of the car. _It's almost evening and the sun's going to set soon. Finding a place to sleep is at the top of my list, followed by something to eat._

He got up onto the sidewalk and headed towards the gate that was his only barrier between the parking lot and absolute freedom.

Halfway there he heard a car engine start and he glanced over to see the Hummer-like vehicle come to life, the windshield wipers flicking across the windshield probably more out of the driver's habit rather than to clear any obstructions. Looking away Caim kept his pace even, unlike his heartbeat.

_They're not out to get you. They're just leaving. _

_At the same time I am._

_Coincidences are stupid._

Shoving his hands deeper into his pockets and bowing his head he pressed on, keeping the guard tower on his side of the road in sight from under his eyelashes. He could hear the car coming up behind him but he didn't look over, not this time, not matter how much he wanted to see who was inside.

He didn't relax until the car passed him and left the lot, and even then he only unclenched the fists that he had made in his pockets. He watched at the vehicle turned the corner and sped off towards the city. _The big city, the Big Apple, New York City… The place where dreams are dashed… _


	16. Chapter 16

It was cold, and that was something that for some reason didn't make sense in Caim's head. _I went in to flowers, and out to slush. _Then he laughed to himself. _At least it'll make falling into the gutters softer. _He cringed then, as a gust of wind slapped him in the face and slid its way unpleasantly down his jacket. He had just gotten into the city as a thick blanket of clouds covered the sky, and he was trying to find a suitable place to hunker down. The center had given him the address of a group home he could stay at for a few days while he got his feet back under him but there was no way that he was going there.

Turning down an alley he noticed a familiar mark on the wall and stopped in his tracks. _Should I? _

A part of his brain seemed to come up with an answer before the organ as a whole could, because instantly his legs began to move in the direction that the mark indicated. As he walked he couldn't see any abandoned churches, nor any rec centers so he became increasingly curious as to where the meeting was to be held.

That's when he saw the propped open back door of a newly abandoned building. _Well that answers that question. _Going over and quietly slipping inside he realized that the meeting had already started. Up at the front of the room and projecting his voice to be heard was none other than Dr. McCoy.

"-and we hope that you make the decision that is in your best interest. Several of my colleagues requested that I not share this information with you, but it's your right to know and your right to decide." He paused and glanced over his shoulder at a woman seated behind him and just to his right. From Caim's position at the back of the room he couldn't make out exactly who she was, but for some reason she seemed familiar. _Was she one of the specialists at the center? A doctor's aide or something? _

Dr. McCoy cleared his throat and wiped his tiny spectacles off on his jacket before continuing. "The cure has been deemed ready for use-" Instantly chatter broke out across the room and Dr. McCoy had to raise his voice to be heard. "-and they have scheduled a free vaccination date for all those that wish to receive it. Two days from now, on Friday, at the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene building on Worth Street, you can attend one of several clinics between six in the morning and six in the evening to get the injection." The chatter rose to such a level that Dr. McCoy seemed it impractical to keep talking. Stepping back the woman stood and touched his arm, speaking to him.

Caim couldn't focus on that though, no matter how much his eyes looked her up and down, trying to figure out where he had seen her. His thoughts were conflicted as well, and the noise in the room wasn't helping.

_Maybe she was a nurse?_

_Friday. Six to six. Wonder if they have six clinics. Six, six, six. They're kind of combating the devil now aren't they. _

_A visitor? Someone's parent or guardian?_

_Worth Street. Wherever that is. Downtown most likely. Sounds familiar – the building's name sure does._

_We met somewhere public. We didn't speak. Or did we?_

_Worth Street. Health Building. Friday. Six to six._

His thoughts got cut off there when he heard his name faintly across the loud crowd. Looking around, his body tense, he finally spotted someone walking towards him through the mass of people. _Riley. _

He couldn't move. He tried – oh how he tried – but his brain suddenly stopped and wouldn't let him move. And Riley was getting closer now, just a few feet away.

And then he was against him, his arms around him, holding Caim tightly against him with Caim's head on his shoulder. And what did Caim do? Nothing. Partially because his arms were pinned to his sides and partially because he didn't know what to do. He hadn't planned on seeing Riley again; finding out about Aaron had hit him a little too close to something vital that didn't need further damage.

_Please let me go. _

A little voice whispered, as though hoping Riley could hear it: _It's ok, I missed you too. _

Caim quickly squashed that voice.

"Where have you been?" Riley asked, pulling back though he kept his hands on Caim's shoulders.

"Away," Caim replied simply, focusing on a spot just over Riley's shoulder.

"Where? We've have ssssssome meetingssssss in ssssssome of the sssssurounding ssssstatessss but I haven't sssssseen you at any of them."

Caim shrugged a shoulder a little. "Guess I missed them."

Riley smiled. "Yeah, well at leassssst you're here." He paused for a moment, his smile fading a little. "You heard the big announcccccccement?"

Caim focused on the flicker of Riley's snake tongue rather than the words. In response he simply nodded.

Riley's smile faded a little more. "And…?"

Caim didn't reply to that, just remained silent, returning his gaze to the spot over Riley's shoulder.

"Are you feeling alright?" Riley asked him.

_I want Friday to be tomorrow, and then I want to sleep for a thousand years. _He nodded. "Yeah, fine."

"Ok…"

Caim nodded again and focused his sight as Dr. McCoy's lady friend stepped into the space he was staring off at. As she turned back to face the doctor she faced him for a second, and he automatically recognized her. He remembered the soft smile, and the way that the wind caught the strands of hair that had come free of her braid. _The lady from the graveyard._

_Coincidences are stupid._

"I have to go," he blurted out, gently stepping back and out from under Riley's hands.

He didn't step out from under his yellow-eyed gaze though, which stayed trained on Caim as Riley's eyebrows met. "Are you ssssssure you're ok?"

"Yeah, fine," he repeated. "I just need to go."

"Where are you going? I could walk you-"

"No, no, it's alright." He was turning to the door even as he spoke. "I'll see you soon, I promise," he aimlessly threw over his shoulder. He wasn't even sure if Riley heard him as he shouldered open the door and stepped out into the alley.


	17. Chapter 17

It had gotten colder during the ten minutes he had been inside and storm clouds had gathered over the city. The possibility of a blizzard was nearly one hundred percent and Caim wasn't looking forward to being stuck outside in it. So as he stepped forward, out of the meeting and into the alley, his forethought was that he had to find somewhere to sleep. _Even an empty dumpster. It's not like I haven't done that before. _He didn't even let the idea of someone following him edge into his mind, so when a hand touched his shoulder he whirled around, instantly bringing his fists up to defend himself.

Seeing Riley through the gap between his arms made him want to vomit.

"Whoa," Riley said, taking a small step back. Caim suddenly felt like they were meeting for the first time again, but his weapons were his fists now and they actually did know each other which seemed to make the situation feel ten times worse.

Quickly he lowered his fists. Swallowing he said quietly, "I won't hurt you."

Riley was quiet for a moment, and Caim wondered whether or not he was remembering the same thing that he was. When he spoke, his first word was Caim's 'name'. "Kyle?" He drew the name out a little bit. "What'ssssssss going on?"

"Nothing. Sorry." He realized that he had spoken to fast and internally winced. He covered it up quickly though and continued, "You startled me. I wasn't expecting-"

"Exxxxxxpecting me to follow you? Yeah. Me neither. But sssssomething told me to." He took a step towards Caim, who didn't move. _Please don't. _"Why don't you come back inssssside? Everyone'sssss leaving. You and I could jussssst ssssssit. Talk. You look like you need to ssssssit and talk."

_Sit, yes. Talk, no. And I don't want to do either here. _He shook his head. "I can't. I have to go."

"You don't have to do anything Kyle."

"I have to do this." He took a step back. "I really have to do this." Glancing around as he took another step back he caught a flash of red, then a flash of black, from the road at the end of the alley. He froze, a deer about to be caught in headlights, and his breath caught in his throat.

"Kyle? Come insssssssside with me. Pleassssse? Jusssssst insssssside, jusssssst into the room. You look like you're going to passsssssss out."

_I actually might. I wish I could._

Shaking his head he looked back to Riley, backing up as he went. He wanted to see the first boy he liked before he ran away from him forever-

And this his back hit something solid and he jerked forward, slipping on a patch of ice as he did and crashing to the pavement. Hurridly rolling on his back and using his arms to pull him away he looked up at the car he had backed into and the large blue man that was half in and half out of vehicle.

"Sorry to scare you," Dr. McCoy said, a slight grin on his face. "I would have honked but though that that might have frightened you more." He held out a hand to help Caim up but Caim got himself to his feet, his eyes catching the blue gaze of the woman sitting in the passenger seat. She gave him the same soft smile and a slightly wave. "Hi," she said.

Caim nodded once, slowly, and gave a lame attempt at a wave. He was so preoccupied with her that he didn't realize that Dr. McCoy was speaking.

"-a ride?

Caim blinked and looked at him. "Excuse me?"

"I was asking if you and Riley would like a ride. A storm's coming in and I don't think that either of you want to be on transit when it happens, or walking for that matter." He gave them a smile that was probably supposed to be gentle and maybe a little joking, but to Caim it showed to much of his pointed teeth and had him taking another, if more subtle, step back.

"That's ok," he said. "I'll just walk. I'm not far, and I don't mind a bit of snow."

He felt a pressence behind him and glanced over to see Riley stepping up beside him. He was giving a good show of smiling, but Caim was good at detecting fake smiles. _Takes a master. _"I'm ok too, but thanks Mr. McCoy; I was going to walk Kyle then call for a cab."

"Well alright, if you insist," Dr. McCoy said slowly, pushing his glasses further up his nose. Giving a soft smile he got back into the car and Caim's eyes were once again drawn to the woman, whose gaze hadn't seemed to leave him.

"We'll hopefully see you boys soon," Dr. McCoy said before driving off.

Riley turned to Caim once they were out of sight, his smile gone. "I'm walking you wherever you're going. You run off so much, and it's time that someone runs after you."

Caim remembered that day so many months ago when he woke up in that stranger's apartment and had run out with the other male shouting at him from a balcony only clad in a towel. He refocused to now, with Riley in his long-sleeve black shirt and jeans standing in the middle of a back alley. After a moment Caim nodded once, his eyes casting away from the other male as he did. Riley have him a slight smile at that, then told him to wait there while he quickly grabbed his jacket. He was back in less than five minutes and Caim hadn't moved so much as his eyes from the icy ground. When they started off they hadn't gone so much as half a block when Caim escaped from the snake-boy's eyes and disappeared into the shadows. _I'm sorry. _


	18. Chapter 18

_Two days later. Friday_

He was freezing when he woke up, but at least he was dry. Stretching out his legs he braced himself for the tingling sensation that was all the blood rushing back to them. Slowly but surely his blood began to move again and he knelt to push open the lid on the recycling dumpster that he had slept in for the past two nights. Standing up he took in a deep breath of air that stung his lungs and looked around. The sun was clear in the sky, causing all the snow and the icicles to sparkle like diamonds. _Oh goodness. How am I thinking like that this early?_

Maneuvering himself out of the dumpster he stomped his feet on the frozen pavement to try to get them warm. His hands he shoved into the pockets of his jackets, which didn't help tremendously but it was better than keeping them out with only his thin gloves to cover them.

With the urge of a breeze he made his way out of the alley and down what was now a familiar path. The day before he had wandered the city in search of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene building and had found that it wasn't terribly far away. He had scouted out where the doors where him and the other soon-to-be-normal-humans would line up to get the cure.

Pulling up his hood and holding his head down against the wind he wondered how many people would be there, and not just to line up for the cure. He knew that the cure caused a lot of strife between all the communities – the anti-mutant humans and the pro-mutant humans- _Though I can't believe that there really is such a thing… - _and the self-hating mutants and the self-loving mutants. _I hope that Riley won't be there, or Aaron._

After a few minutes he rounded a corner and slowly but surely the volume of hundreds of voices got louder. Looking up he realized that he was already down the street from the clinic and he swallowed. _Well here goes everything… _Pressing forward he slowly melded into a group of people heading towards an already thick line, not unlike a snake, that stretched around the corner from the front doors. It was barricaded off with fences guarded by policemen in full riot gear. On the same side of the street stood hundreds of anti-mutant protestors. Across the street, spilling off of the confines of the sidewalk, hundreds of pro-mutant protestors stood with signs and shouts in full force.

Caim stopped to read a sign or two: **We Are People Too! **_People, yes. Human, no. _**Homo-Sapiens Are The Disease! **_There are more of them than there are of you, so good luck ridding yourself of them. _**Don't Do It! **_Too late._

Winding his way through the people towards the end of the line he heard a voice that stopped him. "Get off of me! I'm not doing anything!" Turning his head Caim saw Aaron a couple metres away with a policeman holding him by the upper arm and directing him back towards the mutant protestors. _How do they know that he's not coming to line up? _Then he noticed the sign in Aaron's free hand that simply read: **Don't Let Them Win.** _What is he talking about?_

Sighing he stepped up to the confrontation. "He's looking for me officer, he's not going to do anything."

The officer and Aaron both looked at him, then the officer did a sweep over of the both of them. Letting go of Aaron's arm he moved his hand to the baton at his hip and didn't move. _Sure. We're totally going to start brawling right in front of you_. Caim looked up to meet Aaron's eyes for a moment before looking away.

"Is Riley here?" he asked.

"Yeah," Aaron replied. "He's actually looking for you. Well, looking in the hopes that he won't find you. Kyle, don't do this."

Caim didn't say anything as his heart stopped. Glancing around he was glad not to spot the snake-boy amongst the crowd. "Tell him not to worry about me."

"That's the thing though, he will. He cares about you Kyle, he worries about you."

"Then don't mention that you saw me." He took a step back, aiming to slip into the shadow of the neighbouring building and move through it until he found the end of the line.

"I can't do that. I'm not going to lie to him."

"It's not a lie if you don't say anything." Then there it was again, that feeling like a switch had been flicked in his brain. He looked up and met Aaron's eyes.

"You have no idea how much it's going to crush Riley when he finds out that you've done this. Getting this cure is like cutting out your eyes so you don't have to see."

Caim swallowed and tore his eyes away. He shook his head. "I…" He sighed and tried to get rid of the feeling that someone was poking at the emotional button in his head. "I didn't know… I…" His hands started to shake and he took a step back.

"Kyle come on. Let's go find him and we'll leave. You can crash at our place for the night."

_No no no no no. Don't say that. Don't._

"I have to go."

"Kyle-"

Caim quickly turned around and it felt like he had just ripped a Band-Aid off a particularly sensitive spot. Anger and annoyance and depression all flicked through his head as though his mind couldn't figure out how to feel, and he felt several ripples under his skin. _No. Not here. Not here. _He clenched his hands into fists and hurried away, not listening to hear if Aaron was calling after him.

Finding the end of the line was like finding a sanctuary. Around him were other mutants of varying ages, colours, genders, and appearances who all understood his need to get rid of his extra… sense, as Aaron had put it. _With this world, I wouldn't condemn someone for wanting to rid themselves of sight either, since he brought it up. _That was when he wished he couldn't hear.

"Kyle!"

He flinched and kept his eyes on the ground. _Earth, swallow me whole, please. Do me a favour and just swallow me whole._

"Kyle!" Riley's voice was growing louder, and behind his voice the shouts of the protestors grew. He sprinted over and grabbed onto Caim's arm, pulling on it. "What are you doing?"

"I'm doing what I need to."

"You don't need to do this though."

Caim sighed and pried Riley's hand off his arm, holding onto it for a second longer than he should have before he let go. "Ok, then how about I'm doing what I want to?"

"But why-"

A crash came from down the street and they both turned to see that the two groups of protestors had broken past their respective barriers. Most were yelling in each other's faces, but a couple fights were breaking out and the riot police were swarming forth to break them up. Caim grabbed Riley's arm and pulled him away from the fights, then stepped between him and the violence.

"Holy crap," Riley whispered.

_If you think this is bad…_

"Riley. Leave. This is only going to get worse," Caim told him, glancing over his shoulder to address the snake-boy.

"I can't leave-"

"Yes, you can-"

"Aaron'ssssss sssssstill over there!"

_Of course. _Caim was quiet, then turned to face him. "Go down this street and stay out of sight, I'll get him."

Riley was quiet for a moment. "You won't take no for an ansssssswer will you?"

"Go."

"Be careful-"

Caim barely heard him as he ran back towards the riot.


	19. Chapter 19

The protests had indeed turned into a riot and Caim was dodging fists and clubs and signs every which way. _Where are you Aaron? Dang it. The longer he's even around the corner the longer he's in danger! _Making his way through the crowds he felt a hand fall on his shoulder and his spun around, fists up. His fear and anger flared before dying. Aaron stood in front of him, simply holding one hand up.

"Where is he?" he asked, his voice tense.

"Around the corner. He won't leave without you."

Aaron sighed and ran his other hand through his hair. "Tell him-"

"He won't leave. Trust me, I tried to get him to."_ Well that could be taken one of two ways._

Aaron was quiet for a minute as his eyes met Caim's before looking away. "Tell him I'll be there in a minute."

"You know he won't wait. He'll come looking for you. Do you want him in the middle of all this?" As though to emphasis his point, a police officer and a protestor fell beside them, the policeman yanking the other male's hands behind his back and cuffing him. Caim took a few steps back and glanced around, surveying the area. _We need to get out before we become witnesses to a mass murder. _

"Where is he?!" Aaron shouted, and Caim noticed that they had been separated by several people.

"Around the corner!" He pointed in the direction and as Aaron looked over his shoulder a guy slammed into him, toppling him to the ground.

Caim felt something in him snap and it was as though every emotion he should have been experiencing rushed him at once. It was as though for the past few minutes he had been numb and clear headed. Now he was angry. Dodging people he got to Aaron and yanked the other guy off of him by the back of his shirt. Fighting back, the guy violently tore away and Caim got slammed in the ribs in the process, knocking the wind from him. _Not… fun._

"Hey, take it easy," Aaron said.

_You're trying to reason with terrified and angry people? That won't get you- _The guy hit Aaron square in the jaw. "Fucking mutant!" _–anywhere. Jeez. _

Caim stood and, as calmly as he could, grabbed the guy by both shoulders and swung him around, pushing him back into the crowd. Then he turned to Aaron. "Now would be a good time to run. You, more specifically, not with me and in the direction of your lover." He gestured down the street Riley was hiding out in before sprinting through the crowd as fast as he could, shouts from the angry male ringing out from behind him.

* * *

_**AN:**_** Short and sweet. Just wanted to get this part done so I can upload all the juicy stuff coming up :) **


	20. Chapter 20

_**AN:**_** This is your author speaking. Just giving you a heads up that these upcoming parts are where I copy and paste re-written chapters from my first attempt at this story. Please ignore the fact that the writing will be changing on and off from now on. Thank you. **

* * *

He hit the ground and rolled forward, attempting to keep up his momentum, and crashed into some garbage cans that were lying across the alleyway. Groaning, he sat up, his hand to his head as he tried to get to his feet while the world tilted slightly around him. He had just taken a step when a hand grabbed onto the back of his black sweater and yanked him backwards off his feet, throwing him to the ground.

"Freak," the boy standing over him sneered. It was the one that had punched Aaron earlier.

"Wonder what he does," the second boy, the one with the baseball bat, asked, walking over.

Caim sat up but the second boy kicked him in the chest, pushing him back. Caim stared up at them, his breath quickening as he felt his body start to tremble. _Not again. Jeez, I'm not going out like this. Not in an alley with my lungs punctured. No way. _

"Think it's something that makes him look funny?" the third and final guy, the one with the crowbar, asked. "He's all covered up and stuff."

The first guy took the baseball bat from the second one. Caim wasn't fully sure what he was going to do but he didn't want to stick around and find out.

Jumping to his feet he pushed through the miniature gang in front of him and sprinted off to the sounds of their shouts behind him. _Don't stop, don't stop. _

He turned a corner and kept running, but then he heard their footsteps slow down behind him and he suddenly felt like something very bad was going to happen…

That's when he ran headlong into a brick wall.

Crashing backwards he let out a strangled shout that ripped up his throat as he fought to stay quiet. From behind him he heard laughter and then the first guy brought his baseball bat down.

Caim barely managed to roll out from under the object but then he felt a foot press down on the back of his neck and he froze. _What now…?_

"What should we do with him?" the first guy sneered.

_I'm guessing that letting me go isn't an option…?_

"Let's show him what we think of his kind," the second replied.

A boot connected with Caim's side and he heard several cracking noises. A scream burst from his lips and the foot on his back was removed, allowing him to curl onto the side without the broken ribs. _I'm dead… I am so fucking dead!_

Another boot was aimed at his chest but it hit his arms instead, causing him to wince. _No. No… _

With a groan he sat up on his knees, slightly tilting his head up to look at the three guys surrounding him. They all stared down at him, grinning. The first one swung the bat down towards his shoulder but he reached up and caught it, using it as leverage to stand and push the guy back. Caim yanked the bat from him as he felt back and swung it at the third guy, catching him below the belt and sending him to his knees. The second guy came at him with the crowbar and Caim caught it on his baseball bat. The contact sent spasms down his chest and he realized that, if he ignored the adrenaline pumping through his system, he was having trouble breathing.

While he wasn't paying full attention the first guy came up behind him and wrapped his hands around his throat, causing him to drop the baseball bat while he tried to pry the hands away from his neck. _They won't stop until I'm dead… _The second guy kicked him in the stomach, sending him to his knees as he doubled over. He heard the third guy slowly get to his feet and he felt a spasm course through his body; he thought it was from another kick or hit of some sort, but then he heard the growl.

_No. No! Anything but that!_

The guy holding him let out a scream and his hands were roughly pulled from around Caim's throat as he fell back. Caim was sent forward, not expecting the sudden release, and landed on his injured side, causing him to yell out. As he fought the overwhelming urge to throw up and pass out he watched a wolf rip out the first guy's throat while the other two hit it with the baseball bat and crowbar. Each hit to the animal sent shocks through Caim's system and he found it getting even harder and harder to breathe. As the second guy raised the baseball bat again the wolf lashed out with a paw, ignoring the bleeding body beside it. Caim had to look away from the crimson flood that seemed brighter than usual on the grime smeared concrete.

The second male brought his weapon up, intending on smashing in the animal's skull but the creature was quicker than that. It leapt at the guy, digging its claws into his chest and sending him crashing to the ground.

Caim didn't know what he heard next: the roar, one of the two strangled screams, or the gunshot.

The gunshot blast echoed through the narrow space, causing Caim's own scream and the third guy's shout to be drowned out by a ringing in Caim's ears and the cry from the wolf as it disappeared the instant the bullet entered its hide. Caim felt a piercing heat on the left side of his waist, as though he was being stabbed with a burning hot needle, and he gasped. The breath got caught halfway as his broken ribs pressed a little too harshly against lungs.

"What. The fuck. Are you?"

Caim heard the third guy slowly walk over and he clenched his eyes shut; he could practically see the male raising his gun level with his head.

"You shouldn't be alive…"

_No… I shouldn't. But I came to terms with that a long time ago…_

Despite the slightly suicidal thoughts Caim couldn't help but feel the urge to try to get up again. Maybe it was because he had been running for so long, fighting for so long, that his body had an override over his brain to force him to get up again.

Well, he wasn't getting up, but that didn't mean he couldn't try something else.

He quickly rolled onto his back, tripping up the third male who was – _Thank you _– standing closer to Caim than he had expected. The guy let out a startled shout and fired off the gun reflectively. He tumbled to the ground and dropped his weapon, which skittered across the ground to rest up against a box. Both Caim and the male reached for it from their grounded positions before realizing that they came up short.

The male was the first one on his knees, throwing himself forward to wrap his hand around the firearm. The minute he swung his arm around, ready to pull the trigger, Caim jumped on his arm despite the protests of his entire body, especially when he landed. They fought between them for the weapon and Caim didn't even realize when his hand found the metal and his finger pulled back.


	21. Chapter 21

_The cot was hard beneath his back as he lay awake staring at the shadows of the bars on the ceiling that seemed to warp in front of his vision into scenes that he had only dreamt of. The thought of getting out, but the replaying video of how he had gotten in; the sick curiosity of how he would die, but the numerous times where he had managed to pull himself back from that brink. The black masses on the ceiling grew and wrapped around him, allowing him to close his eyes until he opened them to a grassy field. Faceless people were running around, their actions smeared like blobs of ink, but there was a red stain over near the road. As Caim got closer he realized no, it wasn't near the road, it was on the road. Red smeared across the pavement… Blood smeared across the pavement. Pain welled up in Caim's chest and he was finding it hard to breathe as bile rose in his throat. The sound of sirens blared in the background and he was suddenly running, sprinting in the first direction his eyes turned to. As he kept on running he found that his pace was slowing down, that his legs were growing heavy, and as his sight became tunneled he felt himself falling backward. The sirens kept up in the background and there were paramedics on the scene, dressed in white and saying, "Everything will be ok, you just need to calm down-_

-and everything will be ok." The white was too bright as Caim blinked and swallowed despite that it felt like he was swallowing sandpaper. The voice came again, speaking softly, "Good job, alright, you can close your eyes again-

_-and again and again! When will this stop!?" Caim stood in front of a figure dressed in a ripped suit with its face a distorted pattern of sharp edges and ragged holes. They towered over him, giving Caim the feeling that if they wanted to they could just squash him right there. Then the suit morphed into a guard uniform and Caim felt a little bigger, as though he had just stood up straight after being hunched over forever. The figure was still shouting at him, Caim could see one of the ragged holes moving quickly, but he couldn't hear the words anymore. He turned away and found himself sitting up on a bed in an unfamiliar room, dressed only in his pants. His shirt and sweater were strewn on his side of the bed and as he froze he could feel the slow rhyme of someone breathing beside him. As Caim swung his legs off of the side of the bed he felt a hand graze his and he whipped his head over to look into a pair of-_

-gentle blue eyes. There was a hand on his, steadying its trembling. "Breathe. Just breathe. You're alright. You're safe. It'll be easier if you just-

_-breathe." The hand tightened on his throat. "You don't deserve to breathe." The voice sounded oddly familiar, as did the feeling of the palms on his neck. "Just die already!" Then the hands were wrenched away and Caim lifted his head to look around the inside of a nearly empty bus. "Last stop!" was called from the front and he struggled to get himself down the stairs at the back of the vehicle. He stepped out into the grey snow, into a drift that swallowed his shoes and instantly froze his feet. It didn't matter though; he couldn't feel them anymore, just like he couldn't feel his chest move with a heartbeat or the movement of taking a breath. It was like his whole body had shut down and as he made his way down the darkened street he looked to the sky for the first time in his life to see if there was something there. There was nothing but darkness, and the snow turned to black ice causing him to slip. He fell to the ground and the black ice folded around him like a cocoon. He didn't like the feeling of-_

-something warm on his forehead, it gave him a headache and send fire down his spine. He couldn't remember the last time he had felt like this, and the hand that touched his arm felt like it would burn him if it didn't move away soon. "Just one more-

_-person! One more person through!" Caim felt too many people pushing past him, all trying to go in different directions as different instincts kicked in. The two doors at either end of the hall were gleaming beacons but he could only pick one. The gunshot decided for him and he pushed towards the air, shoving by people who were pushing towards the sterilization. Once outside he took off at a sprint. There were red streaks moving quickly around him, yet they were moving slower than they should have been. A blast sounded from beside him, sending him crashing to the ground where the red absorbed him, twisting and turning around him even as he called out in a silent voice. Then he was up, the feeling of hands on his shoulders forcing him towards and away from the red masses, towards the safety of darkness. He went blindly towards that strange safety, tripping and stumbling as his vision vanished. Something was moving around him now, and he was bouncing a bit. His head was heavy in his hands and he felt like he could pass out at any moment, but he didn't; he was up, walking through grey and red and black, but the black was unavailable to him. There was red behind him that wouldn't let him go that way. He could hear shouting, lots of shouting coming from a small expanse of white before him and it wouldn't stop. Over and over again, just shouts, beckoning him. " Come on, come on, come-_

-on. Come-" The slightly shaky bit of laughter hurt his ears with its clarity. "You scared me for a second." The hand that was once again on his squeezed gently. "Alright. Well that's it. We'll leave you-

_-to die. I just have to leave him to die." Caim was startled by the familiarity of the voice as he backed up away from too much pure red, too much blood, that was smeared over the already red space. The blood glowed though, and seeped from a red form like lava that stretched out menacing tentacles that were reaching for his ankles so they could climb to his throat. Caim backed up quickly, too quickly, and was sent sprawling backwards. A red shape zoomed past and a scream got lodged in his throat. Too much, there was too much red. A black square was off in the distance but he couldn't reach that, couldn't get away from the red spiraling up his side and his arm and his head to squeeze around his chest like a corset . He got to his feet though, even with the red attaching itself to him and the stuff below him and trying to pull him back. The black was getting closer, and closer, but the red was slowly pulling him down, down. Black lines appeared in front of his eyes and his hands found them, gripped them, but then his body let itself be claimed by the red and he fell. Then there was a black shape moving towards him, reaching through the black bars to take Caim's hand and grip it tightly. White overwhelmed him then, and he let himself fall into blackness. _


	22. Chapter 22

Waking up was like pulling himself out of quicksand, but Caim was suddenly far too cold for sleep and the white beyond his eyelids was getting to be too much. Opening his eyes was like prying a piece of metal in half, but the minute they opened and light blasted into them he shut them again, wincing at the brightness. He went to raise a hand to rub his eyes and the first thing he felt was something shifting on his skin, the second thing was the resistance. His eyes flew open and they searched through the coloured spots for his left wrist, which he found bare and strapped to an armrest of some sort with a needle and tube stuck in it. _Did the fight not happen? Did I actually- _Then he saw the scorpion tattoo that was curled around his wrist, and the torch that sat on his forearm. His eyes widened as he took in the fact that not only were his tattoos still there, but that he was shirtless.

A beeping that he hadn't noticed before suddenly picked up its tempo as he tried to sit up, but he only succeeded in causing the strap that was over his chest to press against his injured ribs. He let a hiss out from between his teeth as he lay back and tried pulling at his wrists and his legs, only to find that they were all strapped down and that there was another needle in his other arm. The beeping was getting faster and faster as his breathing came as fast as his ribs would allow. Wherever he was, he needed to get out, and soon. If they found out what he was- _Or maybe they already have. _

"Well if they already have…" he muttered.

The strap on his right hand caught on fire, though the flames didn't touch his hand, and now the wailing of a fire alarm was added to the already beeping machine beside him. As the flames diminished, Caim heard the sound of a door being thrown open and his eyes darted between where the person would appear and his left strap, which he was now burning through.

"Hey, hey! Careful there! What are you doing?"

Caim looked up into the same eyes he had awoken to before. They belonged to a woman dressed in a simple pair of jeans and a t-shirt who was coming around the corner of the curtain. Her hand seemed to be holding something out of sight and Caim instantly stopped. The fire fizzled out and the left strap broke. A moment later the fire alarm stopped blaring, and the beeping beside him was slowing down a little bit.

"There we go." She gave him a small smile, a gentle expression lighting up her features. "If you wanted them off you could have asked."

Caim could only stare at her, wondering where he was and hoping that she was serious about letting him go.

She stepped over to where the beeping was coming from beside him and he watched her, his hands unclenching and clenching where he kept them on the armrests. He didn't want to make any sudden movements and have her do something to him, and he was wary about the fact that he couldn't see was she was holding in her right hand. She checked a machine that Caim realized was a heart monitor and nodded before looking at him.

"You can relax; we're not going to hurt you."

_We?_

"We found you unconscious and slightly half-dead at the end of our driveway."

_Slightly half-dead…?_

"You seemed really out of it, do you remember getting there?"

Caim merely blinked as she went to the end of his bed and picked up a clipboard. She must have noticed him watching her because she looked up at him and laughed a little.

"I'm not your doctor, don't worry," she said with a smile, gesturing to the clipboard. "I barely know what half these diagnosis means."

Caim nodded slightly and watched as she flipped through the papers.

"Concussion, three cracked ribs and one broken, malnourished, dehydrated, frostbite…" She let out a small whistle. "Damn. I'm glad we found you."

_You wouldn't be saying that if you knew what I was._

"But we've got you pretty much fixed up, so you'll live." She smiled as she put the clipboard down. "Now, what can we start calling you besides 'him' or 'kid' or 'the guy we found'?"

Caim didn't reply. He had looked away from her once she put the clipboard down and was staring at the binds holding down his chest and ankles. He wanted to burn through them, but knew that she would probably stop him.

"Do you want those off?"

Caim looked back up at her, but didn't say anything. They watched each other for a moment before she shrugged.

"Alright, never mind."

She turned to leave and the back of her shirt had just disappeared around the curtain when he called out.

"Wait!" His voice caught and sent him into a coughing fit, which sent spasms through his chest, though he more felt the movement than the pain. "W-wait."

She stepped back and Caim looked at her from under his eyelashes before looking away. "W-where am I?"

"So you didn't know where you were going?"

He shook his head.

She was quiet for a moment before speaking. "For now, let's just say that you're somewhere safe. There's someone better suited to explain everything to you, but you'll meet him later."

Caim nodded a little bit and glanced at the bindings again. "Can you… let me go?"

She didn't reply and he looked up to find her staring at him.

"If you don't run, then yes."

"I won't."

She laughed a little and came over to him. "You said that a little too quickly but I'll take your word for it."

She untied the bind from across his chest first and he sat up, though was careful not to move his arms too much as the tubes leading into the needles swayed. Once his feet were unbound he pulled his legs up towards him.

"Thank you," he said, though he didn't look at her.

"No problem. Like I said, you're safe here."

"Natasha?"

The lady - _Natasha -_ looked over to beyond the curtain and Caim followed her gaze, trying to see the man that had spoken.

"Over here Mr. McCoy; he's awake."

The curtain was pulled away and Caim caught a glimpse of a large room that seemed to hold every piece of hospital equipment that one could think of. Caim was about to try to figure out what everything was when he noticed the – _Man? _– that was now standing beside Natasha. He was bigger than a normal man, though Caim couldn't tell whether his – _Fur? _– made him that way. And he was blue. A deep blue that was too rich to be any sort of dye job. He wore a scientist's, or doctor's, white coat and a pair of pants that Caim guessed were custom made for his size. A pair of glasses sat over his eyes and he held his own clipboard, similar to the one that sat at the end of Caim's bed.

He smiled and took a step towards Caim, who instinctively pulled back a little, though not too much. _I doubt anyone would want to offend him_. The man-beast didn't seem insulted though, if anything he smiled a little bigger and held his hand out.

"Pleasure to meet you. I'm Dr. Hank McCoy."


	23. Chapter 23

Caim could only stare from Mr. McCoy's hand to his face and back as he tried to register everything that was happening. _Where did I end up? _

After a few seconds Mr. McCoy pulled his hand back, still smiling, and walked up to an IV bag that was dripping something into Caim's arm.

"We had to hook you up to a saline drip; there was no way we could have gotten you to eat anything in your state."

Caim watched as Mr. McCoy looked back at him, still smiling kindly.

"And a pain killer, of course. We had to stitch you back up, and your ribs were causing you quite a bit of discomfort."

_Stitch me up?_

Caim slowly raised a hand to touch his forehead where he had hit it after running into the wall. On a thin raised line he could feel the sutures that had been placed across the now closed wound.

"I was surprised at all the blood, seeing as your only wounds were the one on your head and a few cuts and scrapes."

Caim kept his head down, his eyes on the pants he wore that he knew were not his. He didn't like people questioning him, and he was sure that both Ms. Natasha and Mr. McCoy wouldn't approve of his answer.

"But anyway, you're safe now, and on your way to recovering, so all's well that ends well."

Caim tried to not laugh at that and listened as Dr. McCoy walked over to check something on his left side.

"Quite an array of art you have there," he commented.

That was it. No matter that this man looked like a mutant himself – _Is a mutant himself. _– Caim wasn't going to stick around and wait for these people to figure him out.

"Can… can the needles come out?" he asked quietly.

As Dr. McCoy turned back to face him Caim glanced around the room, searching for a way out. Ms. Natasha stood off to the side slightly, looking at him. When she caught his gaze she gave him a soft smile.

"We can take this one out," Dr. McCoy told him, removing the needle in Caim's left arm. "Don't move for a moment, and tell me whether you feel lightheaded or in any sort of pain."

"Ok…"

"Dr. McCoy is one of the best doctors around," Ms. Natasha said, and as she did Caim noticed her and Dr. McCoy exchange a look.

Dr. McCoy quickly turned his attention back to Caim with the ease of someone that knew exactly what he was doing. "How are you feeling?"

Caim shrugged a shoulder.

"The same?"

Caim nodded.

"Perfect." He went and picked up the clipboard, scratching down some notes.

Caim rubbed his hands together and scratched at his palms, though he looked anywhere else but at his own skin. He was shirtless and gloveless, which would have triggered a panic attack by now except that Caim was comforting himself, saying that he'd be getting out soon.

Ms. Natasha must have noticed him shifting and his eyes darting around because she spoke up. "Are you ok?"

He merely nodded.

She took a small step towards him.

_Enough is enough._

He ripped out the other IV drip from his arm and was on his feet in less than thirty seconds. Not knowing where to go he just darted forward, hoping for a door on the other side of the certain. As he neared a wall it slid open automatically and he sprinted out. He didn't hear either Dr. McCoy or Ms. Natasha behind him, and he honestly didn't know what to think of that.

_Don't think. Just run. _

At the end of the hall an elevator stood open and he rushed into it, slamming a palm onto the button that would close the doors. The machine instantly went up and he took a deep breath despite his protesting ribs.

_Don't think about any of that or you'll collapse. Just think about getting out._

Even while telling himself not to think about his injuries he felt his legs go slightly limp. Only the elevator opening made him straighten up and run out the moment that he could fit through the doors.


	24. Chapter 24

Despite his urge to continue, as the elevator doors opened he couldn't help but stopping just outside of them.

_Where… am I?_

He had stepped out into what looked like a hallway of either a really old mansion or a boarding school.

_Did some rich guy take pity on me and bring me here?_

He took a tentative step forward, glancing back at the doors that had shut behind him. Looking around he couldn't see anyone, and he couldn't hear anything, but that didn't mean that no one was around. Caim knew how silent people could be when they wanted to.

He continued down the hall, sticking close to the walls and resisting the urge to run. The floor had already creaked twice under him and he didn't want to make any more noise than he had to; he'd only run if he saw or heard something. He could feel his ribs protesting with every breath and nearly every step sent a pain shooting up somewhere. He'd push himself once he got outside to get away from the building, but until then he'd take it slow.

Passing a door he heard it unlock and he rushed around the nearest corner, his heart pounding in his throat as he pressed himself tight up against the wall. He could feel his hands shaking as his blood raced and he took several deep breaths despite the pain, trying to calm himself.

A few pairs of footsteps exited the door he had passed and a couple continued on down the hall, luckily in the opposite direction. Caim could hear the remaining people talk amongst themselves .

"-so just relax around him a bit, ok Kurt? He's probably not used to other mutants," an orderly voiced male said.

"I get it Scott, the Professor already told us."

Then there was a puff sound, like the one that happened after a magician's trick on a kid's cartoon show.

_Other mutants? So Dr. McCoy wasn't a coincidence…_

Caim swallowed the lump in his throat and went down the hallway that he had turned onto. Up ahead there was an open space and he suspected a branching off hallway or something.

_Maybe there's a door…_

He quickened his steps, wincing at every noise. He could see he was coming up to a door ahead and he glanced around. He didn't see any other way. He'd just have to quickly slip by.

He stepped past the larger than average door in two strides, but stopped once he heard what someone was talking about inside. Risking being caught he strained to hear what seemed like a news broadcast. The room must have been a living room.

Glancing back into the room he found it unoccupied, though someone had left the TV on. A lady in a pressed and presentable suit sat behind a desk, talking to the camera.

"-gruesome and shocking for a small part of the city that has never seen violence of this scale before. We go to Clare Waters on the scene."

Caim's eyes widened as the news feed went to a blond lady standing amongst a bunch of other reporters. Although the bodies had been removed and a man was currently rinsing the blood off the street, Caim recognized the alley.

"Residents say that they heard shots fired and several screams late last night. Police say that three teenagers were found dead on the scene, one from a gunshot wound and two from some sort of animal attack. No word yet on what kind of animal-"

_They'll never believe it when they find out…_

He was really shaking now. Ms. Natasha had said that he had dragged himself to this place, so he must not be far from the attack site. Dr. McCoy had commented about the amount of blood on his clothes, and Caim didn't take him for an idiot; Dr. McCoy already mentioned that Caim hadn't had enough cuts to constitute having that much blood on him. They would eventually put two and two together and get the cops to take Caim away.

His breath quickened as he backed away from the TV screen .

_Away… Just get away…_

He whirled around, his legs tensed to burst into a run despite his earlier decision, but he pulled up short when he saw a man standing in the doorway. He held an unlit cigar in one of his large hands and looked Caim up and down with the eyes of a skilled predator. Caim had run into men like this before, but no one nearly as terrifying as this male. He looked like he could pick up Caim with a single hand and snap his neck without a care in the world.

Caim took a small step back but then stopped. Men such as this were like sharks: they could smell fear and blood, and they loved the look of both.

Steeling himself he stood up a little straighter and set his jaw, all of a sudden well aware of the tattoos that spanned his bare torso and arms. He had been told by some that he could be intimidating and although he never believed them he hoped that right now he would be able to put off even an inkling of that supposed strength. He flexed his hands, more for personal reasons than for show or intention, and took a breath. Pain zinged up his chest.

The man raised an eyebrow slightly and crossed his arms. "What you tryin' to put off kid?" His voice was deep and gravelly with the raspy undertone of a smoker.

Caim flicked what he hoped was his cold gaze between the man and the door beside him, not wanting to speak; he knew his voice would crack if he did. The man must have understood because he replied: "Go ahead. No one's stopin' you."

Caim didn't move. This had to be a trick. He glanced again from the door to the man and unwillingly caught his gaze. The man's eyes bored into him and he felt himself start to shake.

"Go on," the man repeated, stepping aside as though ushering a dog out of the room.

Caim slowly took a step, then another, and was halfway to the door when the news caught his attention once more.

"-Malcolm Reglin, has been convicted of second degree murder after nearly two years in court. He was sentenced to twenty five years with chance of parole after fifteen."

Caim's eyes widened as he turned his head to stare at the TV, at the man in the grey suit with dark hair just starting to be streaked with grey and deep brown eyes walking out of the courtroom with only his highly paid lawyer by his side.

A single word slipped from Caim's lips, breathy and with the weight of a thousand worlds: "Finally."


End file.
